Meeting Banner
Abstract #0473

Optimal framework for quantitative magnetization transfer imaging of small structures

Marco Battiston1, Francesco Grussu1, Andrada Ianus2,3, Torben Schneider4, Ferran Prados1,5, James Fairney6, Sebastien Ourselin5, Daniel C Alexander2, Mara Cercignani7, Claudia A M Gandini Wheeler-Kingshott1,8,9, and Rebecca S Samson1

1UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square MS Centre, UCL, London, United Kingdom, 2Centre for Medical Image Computing, Department of Computer Science, UCL, London, United Kingdom, 3Champalimaud Neuroscience Programme, Champalimaud Centre for the Unknown, Lisbon, Portugal, 4Philips Healthcare, Guilford, United Kingdom, 5Translational Imaging Group, Centre for Medical Image Computing, Department of Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, UCL, London, United Kingdom, 6Department of Medical Physics and Bioengineering, UCL, London, United Kingdom, 7CISC, Brighton & Sussex Medical School, Brighton, United Kingdom, 8Department of Brain and Behavioural Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy, 9Brain MRI 3T Mondino Research Center, C. Mondino National Neurological Institute, Pavia, Italy

Quantitative Magnetization Transfer (qMT) Imaging allows quantification of parameters describing the macromolecular component of tissues, potentially specific for myelin in the central nervous system. To date, applications of qMT in small structures (e.g. the spinal cord) have been hampered by prohibitively long acquisition. We present a framework for robust qMT examinations in small structures. It consists of: a dedicated MT-weighted sequence for reduced field-of-view imaging, explicit modelling of the non-steady state signal, and optimal definition of the sampling scheme. Superiority of the framework compared to a conventional qMT protocol is demonstrated in the healthy spinal cord and in the brainstem.

This abstract and the presentation materials are available to members only; a login is required.

Join Here