Reverse Encoding Distortion Correction of Female Pelvic Diffusion-weighted Imaging on a 1.5-T MR System: Influence on...

Area of Science:

• Radiology
• Medical Imaging
• MRI Physics

Background:

• Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) is crucial for female pelvic MRI.
• Image distortion can affect diagnostic accuracy in DWI.
• Apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) measurements are vital for tissue characterization.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess if reverse encoding distortion correction (RDC) improves image quality in female pelvic MRI DWI.
• To determine if RDC maintains accurate ADC measurements.
• To evaluate RDC's effectiveness in both in vitro and in vivo 1.5-T pelvic MRI.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 31 women undergoing 1.5-T pelvic MRI.
• Acquisition of T2-weighted images (T2WI) and DWI with/without RDC.
• Quantitative (SNR, CNR, ADC, DR) and qualitative (OIQ, DS, DCL) assessments by blinded radiologists.

Main Results:

• RDC significantly reduced deformation ratio (DR) in vivo.
• Image quality (OIQ, DS, DCL) improved with RDC (P ≤ 0.0004).
• ADC measurements remained consistent and highly correlated between DWI with and without RDC (ρ = 0.82-0.90).

Conclusions:

• Reverse encoding distortion correction (RDC) effectively improves image quality and reduces distortion in female pelvic MRI DWI.
• RDC preserves the accuracy of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) measurements.
• RDC is a valuable tool for enhancing diagnostic confidence in pelvic MRI.