Abstract #1719

Improved Venous Output Function Using MR Signal Phase for Quantitative 2D DCE-MRI in Human Brain

Claire Foottit¹, Greg O. Cron², Thanh Binh Nguyen^2,3, Matthew J. Hogan^2,3, Ian Cameron,¹²

¹Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; ²Diagnostic Imaging, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; ³University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

For quantitative DCE-MRI of the human brain, the Gd concentration-vs-time in the superior sagittal sinus gives the venous output function (VOF). The VOF can be used to correct errors in the arterial input function, which is crucial for accurate estimation of perfusion parameters. For measuring the VOF, MR signal phase has several advantages over MR signal magnitude: superior SNR; linearity with Gd concentration; and insensitivity to blood flow, partial volumes, and flip angle variations. This work showed that phased-derived VOFs have improved accuracy and precision compared with magnitude-derived VOFs for multislice (2D) DCE-MRI studies of the human brain (n=28).