Hyperpolarized 129Xe MRI can non-invasively measure regional ventilation by mapping the spin-density of inhaled gas, thus providing insights into regional disease pathophysiology. However, the quantitative accuracy of 129Xe ventilation imaging is reduced by B1-inhomogeneity causing spatial variations in both coil sensitivity and nonequilibrium magnetization decay. These can cause lung function impairment to be either over or underestimated. We demonstrate these artifacts can be mitigated by generating flip angle maps from paired 2D-spiral images acquired in the same held breath. This yields quantitatively comparable results to those obtained with a conventional, 2D gradient recalled echo sequence in substantially reduced acquisition times.
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