Improved Quantitative Sodium Imaging with a Flexible Twisted Projection Design and B0 Inhomogeneity Correction

Aiming Lu¹, Frederick C. Damen¹, Ian C. Atkinson¹, Theodore Claiborne¹, Keith R. Thulborn¹

Quantitative sodium MRI can provide vital information on tissue viability in diseases such as stroke and brain tumors. While TPI is an efficient sequence for quantifying tissue sodium concentration, its performance is compromised by its gradient waveform design. Moreover, the extended readout time employed in TPI renders its sensitivity to B0 field inhomogeneity artifacts. A scheme allowing for more flexible and efficient TPI waveform design is proposed here. B0 field inhomogeneities were corrected using field maps obtained quickly from co-registered 1H imaging. High quality quantitative sodium images have been achieved within acceptable times on a clinical 3T scanner.