Journal
MAGNETIC RESONANCE IN MEDICINE
Volume 71, Issue 4, Pages 1632-1640Publisher
WILEY-BLACKWELL
DOI: 10.1002/mrm.24778
Keywords
dielectric; cardiac; 3 T; specific absorption rate; B-1 inhomogeneity; contrast-to-noise ratio
Funding
- Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (NWO) Grootschalige Onderzoeksfaciliteiten [176.010.2005. 030]
- NWO TOPGO
Ask authors/readers for more resources
PurposeTo improve image quality and reduce specific absorption rate in functional cardiac imaging at 3 T. MethodsTwo high permittivity dielectric pads on the anterior and posterior sides of the thorax were numerically designed and implemented using an aqueous suspension of barium titanate. The effects on the average transmit efficiency, B-1 homogeneity, reception sensitivity, and contrast-to-noise ratio were verified in vivo on a dual-transmit system with the body coil driven in conventional quadrature and radiofrequency-shimmed mode. ResultsStatistically significant improvements in average transmit efficiency, B-1 homogeneity, and contrast-to-noise ratio were measured in healthy volunteers (n=11) with body mass indices between 20.3 and 34.9. Simulations show that no radiofrequency hot spots are introduced by the dielectric material. ConclusionHigh permittivity pads are shown to reduce specific absorption rate, improve B-1 homogeneity, and increase contrast-to-noise ratio in functional cardiac magnetic resonance at 3 T. The results presented in this work show that the current approach is more effective than dual-channel radiofrequency shimming. Magn Reson Med 71:1632-1640, 2014. (c) 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available