Accelerated High-Resolution Deep Learning Reconstruction Turbo Spin Echo MRI of the Knee at 7 T

The aim of this study was to compare the image quality of 7 T turbo spin echo (TSE) knee images acquired with varying factors of parallel-imaging acceleration reconstructed with deep learning (DL)-based and conventional algorithms.

This was a prospective single-center study. Twenty-three healthy volunteers underwent 7 T knee magnetic resonance imaging. Two-, 3-, and 4-fold accelerated high-resolution fat-signal-suppressing proton density (PD-fs) and T1-weighted coronal 2D TSE acquisitions with an encoded voxel volume of 0.31 × 0.31 × 1.5 mm 3 were acquired. Each set of raw data was reconstructed with a DL-based and a conventional Generalized Autocalibrating Partially Parallel Acquisition (GRAPPA) algorithm. Three readers rated image contrast, sharpness, artifacts, noise, and overall quality. Friedman analysis of variance and the Wilcoxon signed rank test were used for comparison of image quality criteria.

The mean age of the participants was 32.0 ± 8.1 years (15 male, 8 female). Acquisition times at 4-fold acceleration were 4 minutes 15 seconds (PD-fs, Supplemental Video is available at http://links.lww.com/RLI/A938 ) and 3 minutes 9 seconds (T1, Supplemental Video available at http://links.lww.com/RLI/A939 ). At 4-fold acceleration, image contrast, sharpness, noise, and overall quality of images reconstructed with the DL-based algorithm were significantly better rated than the corresponding GRAPPA reconstructions ( P < 0.001). Four-fold accelerated DL-reconstructed images scored significantly better than 2- to 3-fold GRAPPA-reconstructed images with regards to image contrast, sharpness, noise, and overall quality ( P ≤ 0.031). Image contrast of PD-fs images at 2-fold acceleration ( P = 0.087), image noise of T1-weighted images at 2-fold acceleration ( P = 0.180), and image artifacts for both sequences at 2- and 3-fold acceleration ( P ≥ 0.102) of GRAPPA reconstructions were not rated differently than those of 4-fold accelerated DL-reconstructed images. Furthermore, no significant difference was observed for all image quality measures among 2-fold, 3-fold, and 4-fold accelerated DL reconstructions ( P ≥ 0.082).

This study explored the technical potential of DL-based image reconstruction in accelerated 2D TSE acquisitions of the knee at 7 T. DL reconstruction significantly improved a variety of image quality measures of high-resolution TSE images acquired with a 4-fold parallel-imaging acceleration compared with a conventional reconstruction algorithm.