A feasible and automatic free tool for T1 and ECV mapping

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular Imaging
• Medical Physics
• Biomarker Development

Background:

• Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) is vital for non-invasive tissue characterization, including myocardial fibrosis and edema detection.
• Extracellular volume fraction (ECV) estimation via T1 sequences is an emerging biomarker for diffuse fibrosis in cardiac conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

• Develop and validate automatic software for generating T1 and ECV maps from CMR data.
• Assess the software's reliability using phantom and human subject data.

Main Methods:

• T1 mapping performed using modified Look-Locker inversion-recovery (MOLLI) sequence on a 1.5T scanner.
• T1 maps generated with Fast Nonlinear Least Squares algorithm; ECV maps created using pre- and post-contrast image registration.
• Software validated with phantom and 30 human subjects (22 patients, 8 healthy).

Main Results:

• The developed software produced robust and reliable pre- and post-contrast T1 maps compared to reference software.
• Image coregistration enhanced the quality of ECV maps.
• Mean ECV in healthy subjects was 24.5%±2.5%.

Conclusions:

• The software enables accurate T1 map generation and informative ECV map creation.
• Pixel-wise ECV maps facilitate visualization and evaluation of ECV alterations' extent and severity.