title: Clinical application of arterial spin-labeling MR imaging in patients with carotid stenosis: quantitative comparative study with single-photon emission CT.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Arterial spin-labeling is an emerging technique for noninvasive measurement of cerebral perfusion, but concerns remain regarding the reliability of CBF quantification and clinical applications. Recently, an ASL implementation called QUASAR was proposed, and it was shown to have good reproducibility of CBF assessment in healthy volunteers. This study aimed to determine the utility of QUASAR for CBF assessment in patients with cerebrovascular diseases.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty patients with carotid stenosis underwent CBF quantification by ASL (QUASAR) within 3 days of performance of (123)I-iodoamphetamine-SPECT. CVR to acetazolamide also was assessed by ASL and SPECT. In surgically treated patients, the respective scans before and after the procedures were compared.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Regional CBF and CVR values measured by ASL were significantly correlated and agreed with those measured by SPECT (r(s) = 0.92 and 0.88, respectively). A Bland-Altman plot demonstrated good agreement between 2 methods in terms of CBF quantification. Furthermore, ASL could detect pathologic states such as hypoperfusion, impaired vasoreactivity, and postoperative hyperperfusion, equivalent to SPECT. However, ASL tended to overestimate CBF values especially in high-perfusion regions.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  ASL perfusion MR imaging is clinically applicable and can be an alternative method for CBF assessment in patients with cerebrovascular diseases.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Uchihashi
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hosoda
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Zimine
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fujita
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fujii
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sugimura
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kohmura
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D016893:Carotid Stenosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D013113:Spin Labels; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon
chemical_list: D013113:Spin Labels