A combination of High-Pitch turbo FLASH mode and iterative Beam-Hardening correction in cranial computed tomography...

To assess the impact of combined high-pitch turbo FLASH mode and iterative beam-hardening correction (iBHC) on image quality and diagnostic performance for detecting acute small subdural hematoma in brain CT.

Fifty-three patients received unenhanced CT scans in FLASH mode, while forty-six patients received scans in non-FLASH mode. The scanning time, radiation dose, and motion artifacts were compared between the two techniques, and iBHC and non-iBHC reconstruction methods were applied to FLASH images. The severity of artifacts in the subcalvarial and posterior fossa was categorized into three grades for qualitative analysis. For quantitative analysis, CT values and standard deviations of gray matter, white matter, cerebrospinal fluid, the skull, and subdural hematoma were measured, and the contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) and CT value difference rate were calculated. The differences in these parameters between the iBHC and non-iBHC groups were analyzed.

The FLASH group demonstrated significantly reduced scan time, radiation dose, and motion artifacts compared with the non-FLASH group. In the FLASH scanning mode, the iBHC group had significantly lower severity grades of subcalvarial and posterior fossa artifacts than the non-iBHC group (P < 0.001). Moreover, the CNR between the gray matter and white matter and the CNR and CT value difference rates between the skull and subdural hematoma were significantly higher in the iBHC group (P < 0.05).

The combination of FLASH scanning and iBHC reconstruction effectively reduced artifacts, improved image contrast, and enhanced diagnostic confidence for detecting acute subdural hematomas.