Keywords: System Imperfections, System Imperfections: Measurement & Correction, Comparability, Quality Assurance, Scanner Stability
Motivation: Functional MRI studies aim to detect subtle BOLD signal changes, necessitating regular monitoring to ensure that the scanner maintains a relatively low intrinsic temporal-signal-fluctuation level. Comparable quality assurance (QA) protocols across scanners and sites are critical for pooling fMRI data to enhance statistical power.
Goal(s): To establish comparability in scanner stability measurements for QA.
Approach: This study examines four factors influencing scanner stability measurements: phantoms, sequences, reconstruction, and warm-up procedures.
Results: Harmonizing phantoms, sequences, and reconstruction, along with allowing reasonable warm-up time, is crucial for establishing comparability in scanner stability measurements.
Impact: This work underscores the importance of controlling various factors in scanner stability measurements to ensure comparability for quality assurance, particularly in longitudinal, cross-vendor, multi-center fMRI studies. Furthermore, we provide practical recommendations for establishing standardized quality assurance protocols.
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