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Optimization of spoiler gradients in FLASH MRI
M L Wood1, M Silver, V M Runge
1Department of Radiation Oncology, New England Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts 02111.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
|January 1, 1987
Summary
Spoiler gradients in magnetic resonance (MR) imaging are crucial for preventing artifacts. Specifically, slice-selective spoiler gradients effectively minimize transverse magnetization and suppress image artifacts without altering contrast.
Area of Science:
- Medical Imaging
- Physics
Background:
- Fast magnetic resonance (MR) imaging techniques like FLASH utilize spoiler gradients to dephase transverse magnetization.
- Failure to dephase magnetization can lead to image artifacts in MR scans.
Purpose of the Study:
- To experimentally evaluate the effectiveness of spoiler gradients in suppressing artifacts in 2D MR images.
- To compare the impact of different spoiler gradient strategies on transverse magnetization and image quality.
Main Methods:
- Experimental evaluation of spoiler gradient effectiveness on 2D MR images.
- Acquisition of images from a uniform phantom and human patients.
- Analysis of transverse magnetization immediately before RF excitation in each phase encoding step.
Main Results:
- Spoiler gradients applied in the slice selection direction were found to be effective in artifact suppression.
- A specific strategy of steadily decreasing spoiler gradient amplitude across phase encoding steps minimized transverse magnetization.
- This method successfully suppressed image artifacts without compromising image contrast.
Conclusions:
- Slice-selective spoiler gradients are essential for artifact reduction in fast MR imaging.
- Optimized spoiler gradient design, specifically a decreasing amplitude strategy, can enhance image quality in MR.
- The findings provide practical guidance for improving MR imaging protocols.