SU-E-I-67: Multi-Shot RESOLVE Compared to Single-Shot EPI Diffusion- Weighted MR Imaging Acquisition Scheme

Area of Science:

• Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
• Medical Physics
• Radiology

Background:

• Diffusion Weighted Imaging (DWI) is crucial for characterizing tissue microstructure.
• Single-shot Echo Planar Imaging (SS-EPI) is a widely used DWI sequence but suffers from image artifacts.
• Read-out-segmented EPI multi-shot (RESOLVE) is a novel sequence designed to overcome SS-EPI limitations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To optimize and compare the image quality of RESOLVE and SS-EPI DWI sequences.
• To evaluate RESOLVE's performance against the standard SS-EPI in phantom and in vivo rat brain studies.
• To determine the suitability of RESOLVE for clinical applications requiring high-detail DWI.

Main Methods:

• Both SS-EPI and RESOLVE DWI sequences were configured on a 1.5T MRI scanner.
• Imaging was performed on a saline phantom and a normal rat brain using a wrist coil.
• Key image quality metrics including signal intensity, distortion, ghosting, and Apparent Diffusion Coefficient (ADC) were analyzed.

Main Results:

• RESOLVE demonstrated significantly higher signal intensity (2.4x) and less ghosting (~0.6%) than SS-EPI.
• RESOLVE images exhibited superior detail, minimal distortion, and accurate phantom dimension measurements.
• ADC values were comparable between RESOLVE (2.19 mm²/sec) and SS-EPI (2.21 mm²/sec), indicating comparable diffusion measurements.

Conclusions:

• The RESOLVE sequence provides significantly enhanced image quality over SS-EPI at 1.5T.
• RESOLVE offers distortion-free imaging with improved detail, making it highly beneficial for clinical DWI.
• This advanced DWI technique can improve the characterization of pathologies in routine clinical studies.