High-Resolution 3D Isotropic Black-Blood Imaging with T2prep Inversion Recovery: Comparison between FSE and SSFP

INTRODUCTION: T2prep Inversion Recovery [1] (T2IR) is a hybrid magnetization preparation technique that combines two well-known preparations, T2prep and Inversion Recovery, to provide contrast between tissues with similar T1 but different T2 relaxation times. This unique property has been utilized in vessel wall imaging where the wall-lumen contrast needs to be maximized for accurate diagnosis. Recently, it was demonstrated [2,3] that T2IR can provide flow-insensitive global black-blood (BB) suppression and is therefore suited for peripheral vessel wall MRI where slow blood flow presents a major challenge for flow-sensitive BB techniques such as double inversion recovery and spatial saturation. However, this significant advantage comes at the expense of reduced wall signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), thus requiring prohibitively long scan times when 2D imaging is used [4]. The purpose of this study was to develop an SNR efficient 3D T2IR sequence for high-resolution volumetric imaging of the popliteal artery and to optimize the data acquisition by comparing fast spin echo (FSE) and balanced steady-state free precession (SSFP) sampling strategies at 1.5 Tesla.