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Deep Learning Image Reconstruction for Enhancing Image Quality and Acquisition Speed in 3T EDGE-MP2RAGE
Manasi Arora1, Vishal N Patel1, Shengzhen Tao1
1From the Department of Radiology (M.A., V.N.P., S.T., V.G., J.V.M., C.L., E.H.M.), Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL, USA; Research & Clinical Translation (M.D.N.), Magnetic Resonance, Siemens Healthineers AG, Erlangen, Germany and MR R&D Collaborations (V.K.S.), Siemens Medical Solutions, Atlanta GA.
Background And Purpose:
The three-dimensional edge-enhancing gradient echo (3D EDGE) MRI sequence is valuable in epilepsy imaging due to improved visualization of cortical lesions by enhancing the gray matter-white matter boundary contrast. However, EDGE suffers from low SNR and long acquisition times at 3T. This study evaluated a 3T deep learning (DL)-based reconstruction implemented in the EDGE-MP2RAGE sequence and compared its image quality with standard 3T and ultra-high-field 7T EDGE-MP2RAGE MRI.
Materials And Methods:
In this retrospective study, 117 patients underwent 3T DL, standard 3T, or 7T EDGE-MP2RAGE MRI (n=39 per group). The EDGE images underwent quantitative and qualitative comparison of image quality. Quantitative analysis included contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) and image noise. Qualitative image quality was independently and blindly scored by two neuroradiologists using a Likert scale. Statistical comparisons used Mann-Whitney U tests with Bonferroni correction.
Results:
Compared with standard 3T EDGE-MP2RAGE, the 3T DL EDGE-MP2RAGE sequence reduced scan time by 47.7%, increased CNR by 85.9% (P<.001), and decreased image noise by 22.6% (P=.005). Qualitatively, 3T DL EDGE demonstrated significantly higher overall image quality, sharpness, structural conspicuity, and contrast uniformity (P<.001) without introducing additional artifacts. Compared with 7T, 3T DL EDGE achieved comparable CNR (P=.17) and noise (P=.77), while showing superior contrast uniformity (P<.001).
Conclusions:
DL-based reconstruction improves image quality in 3T EDGE-MP2RAGE while simultaneously decreasing scan time by nearly half versus conventional 3T EDGE-MP2RAGE.
