[A new approach to research graphical performance of MRI RF coil based on the quantitative comparison method].
OBJECTIVE
To compare the performance of three different types of RF coil in 3.0T MRI, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and image uniformity in 3.0 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging system have been studied.


METHODS
In addition to the measurement of SNR and Uniformity based on the protocol recommend by AAPM, the images had also been analyzed using SPSS and MATLAB to get the SNR distribution along two vertical direction and the whole imaging plane.


RESULTS
The SNR with T/R birdcage coil and 8-ch surface coil is seven and twelve times higher than surface coil in the region of interest (ROI), which was set in the center of the phantom images. With regard to the spatial variation of sensitivity, the uniformity of T/R birdcage coil and 8-ch surface coil are also much higher than that of surface coil.


CONCLUSIONS
The images from T/R birdcage and phased array coils are all better than those of surface coil. The SNR of the images from phased array coil is highest while the uniformity of the images from T/R birdcage coil is highest.
Zhu
Gaojie
G
The sixth people's hospital affiliated to Shanghai Jiaotong University, BME Department, Shanghai, 200233.
Li
Bin
B
Wei
Xiaoer
X
D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000295:instrumentation*; D008422:Materials Testing / Q000379:methods*; D019047:Phantoms, Imaging; D011846:Radio Waves; D059629:Signal-To-Noise Ratio