title: Visualization of the lenticulostriate artery with flow-sensitive black-blood acquisition in comparison with time-of-flight MR angiography.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the capability of flow-sensitive black blood (FSBB) acquisition to visualize the lenticulostriate artery (LSA) in comparison with time-of-flight (TOF) angiography.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-one healthy subjects (13 males and 8 females, 19-44 years old) were enrolled in this study after obtaining written informed consent. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examinations were performed with FSBB and TOF to visualize the LSA using a 1.5T MRI unit. In FSBB acquisition a motion probing gradient of b = 4 sec/mm(2) was applied to dephase blood flow. Images were reconstructed into coronal sections and were evaluated in terms of number, length, and image quality at origins and distal areas of visualized LSA branches with a four-point scale.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In all, 145 LSA branches were visualized with FSBB and 66 branches with TOF. There was no LSA visualized only with TOF. In all evaluated terms, FSBB was significantly better than TOF.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We could better visualize the LSA with FSBB than with TOF, both quantitatively and qualitatively. FSBB is a promising method, although it remains to be evaluated in clinical cases.
authors.affiliation: Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Kimio
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Gotoh
authors.forename: Tomohisa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Okada
authors.forename: Yukio
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Miki
authors.forename: Masato
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ikedo
authors.forename: Ayako
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ninomiya
authors.forename: Toshikazu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kamae
authors.forename: Kaori
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Togashi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000465:Algorithms; D001479:Basal Ganglia / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000473:pathology*; D020144:Basal Ganglia Cerebrovascular Disease / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002536:Cerebral Arteries / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D018810:Magnetic Resonance Angiography / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D055815:Young Adult