RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Clinical Experience of 1-Minute Brain MRI Using a Multicontrast EPI Sequence in a Different Scan Environment
JF American Journal of Neuroradiology
JO Am. J. Neuroradiol.
FD American Society of Neuroradiology
SP 424
OP 429
DO 10.3174/ajnr.A6427
VO 41
IS 3
A1 K.H. Ryu
A1 H.J. Baek
A1 S. Skare
A1 J.I. Moon
A1 B.H. Choi
A1 S.E. Park
A1 J.Y. Ha
A1 T.B. Kim
A1 M.J. Hwang
A1 T. Sprenger
YR 2020
UL http://www.ajnr.org/content/41/3/424.abstract
AB BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The long scan time of MR imaging is a major drawback limiting its clinical use in neuroimaging; therefore, we aimed to investigate the clinical feasibility of a 1-minute full-brain MR imaging using a multicontrast EPI sequence on a different MR imaging scanner than the ones previously reported.MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the records of 146 patients who underwent a multicontrast EPI sequence, including T1-FLAIR, T2-FLAIR, T2WI, DWI, and T2*WI sequences. Two attending neuroradiologists assessed the image quality of each sequence to compare the multicontrast EPI sequence with routine MR imaging protocols. We used the Wilcoxon signed rank test and McNemar test to compare the 2 MR imaging protocols.RESULTS: The multicontrast EPI sequence generally showed sufficient image quality of >2 points using a 4-point assessment scale. Regarding image quality and susceptibility artifacts, there was no significant difference between the multicontrast EPI sequence DWI and routine DWI (P > .05), attesting to noninferiority of the multicontrast EPI, whereas there were significant differences in the other 4 sequences between the 2 MR imaging protocols.CONCLUSIONS: The multicontrast EPI sequence showed sufficient image quality for clinical use with a shorter scan time; however, it was limited by inferior image quality and frequent susceptibility artifacts compared with routine brain MR imaging. Therefore, the multicontrast EPI sequence cannot completely replace the routine MR imaging protocol at present; however, it may be a feasible option in specific clinical situations such as screening, time-critical diseases or for use with patients prone to motion.EPIMixmulticontrast EPI sequenceSWANsusceptibility-weighted angiography