Abstract #0066

Arterial Input Function for Bolus Tracking Perfusion Imaging in the Brain

Elias Kellner¹, Irina Mader², Daniel Nico Splitthoff¹, Marco Reisert¹, Katharina Frster³, Thao Nguyen-Thanh², Peter Gall⁴, Valerij G. Kiselev¹

¹Department of Radiology, Medical Physics, University Medical Center Freiburg, D-79106 Freiburg, Germany; ²Section of Neuroradiology, Neurocenter of the Freiburg University Hospital, D-79106 Freiburg, Germany; ³Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, D-79106 Freiburg, Germany; ⁴Department of Radiology, Medical Physics,, University Medical Center Freiburg, D-79106 Freiburg, Germany

Dynamic susceptibility contrast MRI is a well-known method for determination of perfusion parameters in the brain. The major challenge of the method is to measure the contrast inflow into the brain, commonly, the arterial input function (AIF). The measurement of the AIF is subject to a number of problems such as signal void in blood, nonlinear dependence on contrast agent concentration and partial volume effects. In this study, those problems are solved with an extension of a conventional perfusion pulse sequence. Results obtained in an animal model reproduce known values of the cardiac output and the cerebral blood volume.