In-vitro Detection of Intramammary-like Macrocalcifications Using Susceptibility-weighted MR Imaging Techniques at...

Area of Science:

• Magnetic Resonance Imaging
• Medical Physics
• Radiology

Background:

• Intramammary calcifications are common findings in breast imaging.
• Susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI) and quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) are advanced MRI techniques with potential for detecting calcifications.
• Optimizing these techniques requires understanding their performance with different calcification characteristics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the technical accuracy of SWI and QSM for detecting simulated intramammary calcifications.
• To investigate the influence of echo time (TE), calcification volume, and composition on detection accuracy at 1.5T.

Main Methods:

• Simulated intramammary calcifications using jello-embedded blackboard chalk and ostrich eggshell particles.
• Acquisition of breast phantoms using a 3D multi-echo gradient echo sequence at 1.5T.
• Qualitative and quantitative analysis including signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), SWI, and QSM.

Main Results:

• Jello, chalk, and eggshell were suitable for phantom creation.
• Blackboard chalk showed significantly higher SNR decrease and CNR increase compared to ostrich eggshell.
• Increasing TE enhanced signal void volume in magnitude images, SWI, and QSM, with SWI showing greater blooming effect.
• Both MRI and CT overestimated calcification volumes, with MRI overestimation dependent on TE.

Conclusions:

• TE values, calcification volume, and composition significantly affect the visualization of intramammary calcifications using SWI and QSM.
• These findings are critical for optimizing MRI protocols for calcification detection.
• Further research may refine these techniques for improved diagnostic accuracy.