title: Positive contrast visualization of nitinol devices using susceptibility gradient mapping.
abstract: MRI visualization of devices is traditionally based on signal loss due to T(2)* effects originating from local susceptibility differences. To visualize nitinol devices with positive contrast, a recently introduced postprocessing method is adapted to map the induced susceptibility gradients. This method operates on regular gradient-echo MR images and maps the shift in k-space in a (small) neighborhood of every voxel by Fourier analysis followed by a center-of-mass calculation. The quantitative map of the local shifts generates the positive contrast image of the devices, while areas without susceptibility gradients render a background with noise only. The positive signal response of this method depends only on the choice of the voxel neighborhood size. The properties of the method are explained and the visualizations of a nitinol wire and two stents are shown for illustration.
authors: Russell H Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA. evertjan@isi.uu.nl
authors: Evert-jan P A
authors: EJ
authors: Vonken
authors: Michael
authors: M
authors: Schär
authors: Matthias
authors: M
authors: Stuber
mesh_terms: D000497:Alloys; D003287:Contrast Media / Q000032:analysis; D005583:Fourier Analysis; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D019047:Phantoms, Imaging; D015607:Stents
chemical_list: D000497:Alloys; D003287:Contrast Media; C013616:nitinol