Interleaved T1- & T2*-Mapping for Dynamic Abdominal Tissue Oxygenation Applications

Yao Ding¹, Qing Yuan², Rami R Hallac¹, Ralph P. Mason², Roderick W. McColl², Robert D. Sims², Paul T. Weatherall²

MR relaxation time mapping has been used for the assessment of oxygenation in various fields. A free breathing respiratory-triggered interleaved T1 and T2* mapping sequence was developed and applied to acquire quantitative relaxation time maps of abdominal organs in a dynamic scan without the need for image registration. Compared to traditional tissue oxygenation methods which only acquire one parameter in a dynamic study, this technique is a more efficient method which enables simultaneous monitoring of both tissue and blood dynamic oxygenation processes. While abdominal organs are used here as an example, this method can be more easily performed on oncology patients, many of whom have difficulty cooperating for long exams.