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In vitro validation of phase‐contrast flow measurements at 3 T in comparison to 1.5 T: Precision, accuracy, and signal‐to‐noise ratios
Author(s) -
Lotz Joachim,
Döker Rolf,
Noeske Ralph,
Schüttert Meike,
Felix Roland,
Galanski Michael,
Gutberlet Matthias,
Meyer Gerd Peter
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
journal of magnetic resonance imaging
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.563
H-Index - 160
eISSN - 1522-2586
pISSN - 1053-1807
DOI - 10.1002/jmri.20275
Subject(s) - signal (programming language) , accuracy and precision , contrast (vision) , phase contrast microscopy , noise (video) , sensitivity (control systems) , phase (matter) , nuclear magnetic resonance , analytical chemistry (journal) , biomedical engineering , computer science , chemistry , medicine , physics , statistics , chromatography , mathematics , artificial intelligence , optics , electronic engineering , engineering , image (mathematics) , programming language , organic chemistry
Purpose To evaluate the signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR), precision, and accuracy of phase‐contrast flow measurements at 3 T with the help of an in vitro model and to compare the results with data from two 1.5‐T scanners. Materials and Methods Using an identical setup of a laminar flow model and sequence parameters, measurements were done at one 3‐T and at two 1.5‐T systems. Precision, accuracy, and SNR were obtained for velocity encodings ranging from 55 up to 550 cm −1 . SNRs were calculated from the magnitude as well as the flow encoded images. Results Precision and accuracy for the in vitro flow model were similarly high in all scanners with no significant difference. For velocity encodings from 55 cm −1 up to 550 cm −1 , the SNR in magnitude as well as phase encoded images of the 3‐T measurements was approximately 2.5 times higher than the SNR obtained from the two 1.5‐T systems. Conclusion Even without optimization for the 3‐T environment, flow measurements show the same high accuracy and precision as is known from clinical 1.5‐T scanners. The superior SNR at 3 T will allow further improvements in temporal and spatial resolution. This will be of interest for small‐size vessels like coronary arteries or for slow diastolic flow patterns. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2005;21:604–610. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.