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Improved coronary MR angiography using wideband steady state free precession at 3 tesla with sub‐millimeter resolution
Author(s) -
Lee HsuLei,
Shankaranarayanan Ajit,
Pohost Gerald M.,
Nayak Krishna S.
Publication year - 2010
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.22150
Subject(s) - steady state free precession imaging , wideband , precession , physics , image quality , nuclear magnetic resonance , image resolution , nuclear medicine , magnetic resonance imaging , medicine , radiology , optics , computer science , image (mathematics) , artificial intelligence , astronomy
Abstract Purpose: To suppress off‐resonance artifacts in coronary artery imaging at 3 Tesla (T), and therefore improve spatial resolution. Materials and Methods: Wideband steady state free precession (SSFP) sequences use an oscillating steady state to reduce banding artifacts. Coronary artery images were obtained at 3T using three‐dimensional navigated gradient echo, balanced SSFP, and wideband SSFP sequences. Results: The highest in‐plane resolution of left coronary artery images was 0.68 mm in the frequency‐encoding direction. Wideband SSFP produced an average SNR efficiency of 70% relative to conventional balanced SSFP and suppressed off‐resonance artifacts. Conclusion: Wideband SSFP was found to be a promising approach for obtaining noncontrast, high‐resolution coronary artery images at 3 Tesla with reliable image quality. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2010;31:1224–1229. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.