MR Intracranial Vessel Wall Imaging: A Systematic Review

Area of Science:

• Radiology
• Medical Imaging
• Neuroimaging

Background:

• Intracranial vessel wall MR imaging (VWI) is crucial for diagnosing cerebrovascular diseases.
• Variability in VWI techniques and protocols is known but not well-quantified.
• Standardization is needed for reliable clinical implementation and research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review and identify trends in intracranial VWI techniques and protocols.
• To assess the extent of variability in VWI acquisition parameters and reporting.
• To evaluate the reproducibility of technical development in VWI.

Main Methods:

• Systematic search of three databases for publications on intracranial VWI (1995-2018).
• Screening of 2,431 articles based on inclusion/exclusion criteria; 122 met criteria.
• Modified Nature Reporting Summary Guideline used to score technical development publications for reproducibility.

Main Results:

• Increased use of 3-Tesla MR and 3D volumetric T1-weighted acquisitions observed.
• Most clinical VWI publications achieved spatial resolution ≤0.55 mm.
• Technical development publications (n=32) focused on pulse sequence optimization, CSF suppression, and ex vivo imaging, demonstrating high reproducibility (mean score 0.87).

Conclusions:

• Intracranial VWI techniques show evolving trends, with increasing adoption of advanced MR technologies.
• High reproducibility in technical development suggests a strong foundation for future VWI advancements.
• Understanding current practices and variability is essential for directing future research and clinical implementation of VWI.