Abstract
Objectives
To evaluate the feasibility of zoomed diffusion-weighted EPI (z-EPI) in the head and neck in a healthy volunteer population and to compare to conventional single-shot EPI (c-EPI).
Material and Methods
Nine volunteers were included in this prospective, IRB-approved study. Examinations were performed on a 3 T-MR system equipped with a two-channel, fully-dynamic parallel transmit array. The acquired sequences consisted of a T2w-TSE, a c-EPI, and two z-EPI acquisitions. For quantitative assessment of distortion artefacts, DW images were fused with T2-TSE images. Misregistration of DW images with T2-TSE images was assessed in the cervical spine. For qualitative assessment, two readers ranked c-EPI and z-EPI sequences in terms of susceptibility artefacts, image blur, and overall imaging preference. ADC values of several anatomical regions were calculated and compared between sequences.
Results
Mean maximum distortion with the c-EPI was 5.9 mm ± 1.6 mm versus 2.4 mm ± 1 mm (p < 0.05) with z-EPI. Both readers found more blur and susceptibility artefacts in every case with c-EPI. No statistically significant differences in calculated ADC values were observed.
Conclusion
z-EPI of the head and neck leads to substantial image quality improvements relative to c-EPI due to a reduction in susceptibility artefacts and image blur.
Key Points
• Zoomed DWI is feasible in the head and neck.
• Image quality improves substantially with zoomed DWI of the neck.
• Zoomed DWI exhibits markedly reduced susceptibility artefacts.
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Acknowledgments
The scientific guarantor of this publication is Dr. Stefan Haneder. The authors of this manuscript declare relationships with the following companies: Dr. Josef Pfeuffer is an employee of Siemens Healthcare. The Institute of Clinical Radiology and Nuclear Medicine has research agreements with Siemens healthcare Sector. The authors state that this work has not received any funding.
No complex statistical methods were necessary for this paper. Institutional Review Board approval was obtained. Written informed consent was obtained from all subjects (patients) in this study. Approval from the institutional animal care committee was not required because the study was not on animals. Methodology: Prospective, intraindividual comparison study, performed at one institution
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Riffel, P., Michaely, H.J., Morelli, J.N. et al. Zoomed EPI-DWI of the head and neck with two-dimensional, spatially-selective radiofrequency excitation pulses. Eur Radiol 24, 2507–2512 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00330-014-3287-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00330-014-3287-6