Accelerated Diffusion Spectrum Imaging in the Human Brain Using Compressed Sensing

Marion Irene Menzel¹, Kedar Khare², Kevin F. King³, Xiaodong Tao², Christopher J. Hardy², Luca Marinelli²

We developed a new method to accelerate diffusion spectrum imaging (DSI) in the human brain using compressed sensing (CS) to an extent that can be tolerated in volunteers and patients. We performed simulations and real experiments in brains of healthy volunteers, where we undersampled q-space with different sampling patterns and reconstructed it using CS. We could demonstrate that even with acceleration up to factors of R = 4 essential information on diffusion, such as orientation distribution function (ODF) and diffusion coefficients are retained. Shortening DSI acquisitions significantly by means of CS would open up the door to new contrasts, which are truly based on underlying tissue properties.