Abstract #3377

Kuehn D, Shinagawa H, Sutton B, Tsao J

Analysis of function of muscles involved in speech processes requires high spatial and temporal resolutions. We applied a spiral FLASH sequence to imaging the levator veli palatini muscle during natural speech. Image quality was found to be similar to a Cartesian FLASH sequence, but the gradient-induced auditory noise was reduced, allowing improved recording of speech. Adequate temporal resolution was achieved using a sliding window reconstruction to better visualize the muscle motion.