Improved contrast of enhancing brain lesions on postgadolinium, T1-weighted spin-echo images with use of magnetization transfer.
OBJECTIVE
To prove that the contrast of enhancing brain lesions on post-gadolinium T1-weighted spin-echo (SE) images can be statistically significantly improved with magnetization-transfer (MT) indirect saturation.


METHODS
The contrast-to-noise ratios (C/Ns) of 201 enhancing brain lesions in 110 patients were compared on conventional and MT T1-weighted SE images obtained at 1.5 T after injection of 0.05-0.10 mmol/kg gadopentetate dimeglumine or gadodiamide.


RESULTS
The MT T1-weighted SE images showed a 37% reduction in signal intensity of background white matter and thereby provided a 108% improvement in the C/N of enhancing brain lesions over the conventional T1-weighted SE images (P < .001).


CONCLUSIONS
The C/Ns obtained with single-dose gadolinium and the MT T1-weighted SE technique were twice those obtained with the conventional technique and are at least equivalent to reported values obtained with triple-dose gadolinium and conventional T1-weighted SE images.
Finelli
D A
DA
Department of Radiology, Metro-Health Medical Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, OH 44109-1998.
Hurst
G C
GC
Gullapali
R P
RP
Bellon
E M
EM
D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology; D001927:Brain Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D003287:Contrast Media; D004338:Drug Combinations; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008536:Meglumine; D009942:Organometallic Compounds; D004369:Pentetic Acid / Q000031:analogs & derivatives*
D003287:Contrast Media; D004338:Drug Combinations; D009942:Organometallic Compounds; D008536:Meglumine; D004369:Pentetic Acid; C064925:gadodiamide; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA