Abstract #2186

3He NMR Washout Monitoring Combined with 3He Ventilation MRI: Initial Experience in Healthy Volunteers and Cystic Fibrosis.

Martin Heiner Deppe¹, Juan Parra-Robles¹, Salma Ajraoui¹, Sean B. Fain^2,3, Christopher J. Taylor⁴, Kenny A. Macleod⁵, Alexander R. Horsley⁵, Jim M. Wild¹

¹Academic Unit of Radiology, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, Yorkshire, UK; ²Department of Radiology, UW Hospital, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA; ³Department of Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA; ⁴Academic Unit of Child Health, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, Yorkshire, UK; ⁵Molecular Medicine Centre, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK

Inert gas washout is a well-known method for assessment of lung function, and has been demonstrated to be sensitive to obstructive airways disease. This work demonstrates inert gas washout monitored via the 3He NMR signal. It is shown that this method can be integrated with 3He MRI into a single exam using the same bolus of hyperpolarized gas. Initial results from healthy volunteers and a cystic fibrosis patient are presented. Comparisons with conventional inert gas washout measurements using SF6 are drawn. Monitoring the washout of 3He after MRI yields additional physiological information at no extra cost.