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Published on: November 27, 2016
High-Throughput Quantitative Chemical Shift-Encoded MRI of the Liver
Garrett C Fullerton1,2, Jiayi Tang1,2, Jitka Starekova1
1Department of Radiology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA.
Journal of Magnetic Resonance Imaging : JMRI
|July 10, 2026
Summary
A novel high-throughput MRI workflow significantly improves efficiency, enabling over 16 liver fat quantification exams per hour with high repeatability. This AI-driven approach enhances MRI utilization and patient access.
Area of Science:
- Medical Imaging
- Radiology
- Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
Background:
- MRI access is limited by long exam times and low utilization.
- Workflow variability and inefficient room turnaround lead to conservative scheduling.
- Focused protocols can shorten exam times but don't fully address workflow inefficiencies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and evaluate a high-throughput MRI suite architecture and workflow.
- Utilize AI-prescribed free-breathing chemical shift-encoded (CSE) MRI.
- Quantify liver proton density fat fraction (PDFF) in under 5 minutes of MRI room time.
Main Methods:
- Prospective study with 24 healthy volunteers in two cohorts.
- 1.5T free-breathing 2D multi-echo gradient echo CSE-MRI sequence.
- Continuous queuing workflow with timestamped video and image metadata for timing analysis.
Main Results:
- Achieved diagnostic image quality in all 72 exams (median PDFF Likert score 5/5).
- Average MRI room times were 4:09±0:14 min (staff) and 3:35±0:34 min (community).
- Turnaround times under 2 min enabled a throughput of 16.1 exams/hour, with high PDFF repeatability (RCs ≤ 1.21%).
Conclusions:
- The high-throughput MRI workflow achieved over 16 exams per hour with repeatable liver fat quantification.
- Demonstrated a framework for improving MRI utilization and patient access.
- AI-driven automated prescription ensured complete liver coverage in all exams.
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The position of the absorption signal of a sample is reported relative to the position of the signal of tetramethylsilane (TMS), which is added as an internal reference while recording spectra. The difference between the absorption frequencies of the sample and TMS (in Hz) is divided by the spectrometer operating frequency (in MHz) to obtain a dimensionless quantity called the chemical shift. It is reported on the δ (delta) scale and expressed in parts per million.
For instance, the proton...
For instance, the proton...
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