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MRI of the carotid artery at 7 Tesla: Quantitative comparison with 3 Tesla
Author(s) -
Koning Wouter,
de Rotte Alexandra A.J.,
Bluemink Johanna J.,
van der Velden Tijl A.,
Luijten Peter R.,
Klomp Dennis W.J.,
Zwanenburg Jaco J.M.
Publication year - 2015
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.24601
Subject(s) - carotid arteries , stenosis , medicine , nuclear medicine , magnetic resonance imaging , common carotid artery , nuclear magnetic resonance , radiology , physics , cardiology
Purpose To evaluate the 7 Tesla (T) MRI of the carotid arteries, as quantitatively compared with 3T. Materials and Methods The 7T MRI of the carotid arteries was performed in six healthy subjects and in two patients with carotid stenosis. The healthy group was scanned at 3T and at 7T, using current coil setups at both field strengths. T 1 and T 2 values of the normal carotid vessel wall were assessed at both field strengths. B 1 + maps and signal to noise ratio (SNR) maps were obtained, as well as T 1 weighted images with a resolution as high as 0.4 × 0.4 × 1.5 mm 3 . Results The T 1 of the normal carotid vessel wall was found to be 1227 ± 47 ms at 3T and 1628 ± 130 ms at 7T, while a T 2 of 55 ± 11 ms at 3T and 46 ± 4 ms at 7T was found. A twofold average gain in SNR at the carotid arteries was found with 7T. T 1 weighted images showed an increased SNR at 7T for all subjects. Conclusion Evaluation between 3T and 7T carotid MRI with optimized setups at both field strengths showed improved SNR at 7T, an increase in vessel wall T 1 and a decrease in vessel wall T 2 . J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2015;41:773–780. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.