An improved preparation pulse for quantitative t2 mapping of blood in the cardiac chambers

Background T2 is sensitive to hemoglobin oxygen saturation (%HbO2). Non-invasive, rapid in-vivo quantification of %HbO2 based on the T2 of blood may be useful in patients with congenital heart disease. Although singleshot, T2-prepared SSFP enables rapid myocardial T2 quantification [1], flow sensitivity of the T2 preparation, especially at later echo times, may cause an underestimation of T2 values in flowing blood. We aim to reduce flow sensitivity of the T2 preparation pulse for rapid and accurate quantification of T2 in blood.