title: Determination of the rCBF in the amygdala and rhinal cortex using a FAIR-TrueFISP sequence.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Brain perfusion can be assessed non-invasively by modern arterial spin labeling MRI. The FAIR (flow-sensitive alternating inversion recovery)-TrueFISP (true fast imaging in steady precession) technique was applied for regional assessment of cerebral blood flow in brain areas close to the skull base, since this approach provides low sensitivity to magnetic susceptibility effects. The investigation of the rhinal cortex and the amygdala is a potentially important feature for the diagnosis and research on dementia in its early stages.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-three subjects with no structural or psychological impairment were investigated. FAIR-True-FISP quantitative perfusion data were evaluated in the amygdala on both sides and in the pons. A preparation of the radiofrequency FOCI (frequency offset corrected inversion) pulse was used for slice selective inversion. After a time delay of 1.2 sec, data acquisition began. Imaging slice thickness was 5 mm and inversion slab thickness for slice selective inversion was 12.5 mm. Image matrix size for perfusion images was 64 × 64 with a field of view of 256 × 256 mm, resulting in a spatial resolution of 4 × 4 × 5 mm. Repetition time was 4.8 ms; echo time was 2.4 ms. Acquisition time for the 50 sets of FAIR images was 6:56 min. Data were compared with perfusion data from the literature.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Perfusion values in the right amygdala, left amygdala and pons were 65.2 (± 18.2) mL/100 g/minute, 64.6 (± 21.0) mL/100 g/minute, and 74.4 (± 19.3) mL/100 g/minute, respectively. These values were higher than formerly published data using continuous arterial spin labeling but similar to (15)O-PET (oxygen-15 positron emission tomography) data.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The FAIR-TrueFISP approach is feasible for the quantitative assessment of perfusion in the amygdala. Data are comparable with formerly published data from the literature. The applied technique provided excellent image quality, even for brain regions located at the skull base in the vicinity of marked susceptibility steps.
authors.affiliation: Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Neuro-Radiology, Eberhard-Karls-University, Tübingen, Germany. burkhard.ludescher@med.uni-tuebingen.de
authors.forename: Burkhard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ludescher
authors.forename: Petros
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Martirosian
authors.forename: Uwe
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Klose
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nägele
authors.forename: Fritz
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Schick
authors.forename: Ulrike
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Ernemann
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000679:Amygdala / Q000098:blood supply*; D002560:Cerebrovascular Circulation; D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D018728:Entorhinal Cortex / Q000098:blood supply*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011149:Pons / Q000098:blood supply; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013113:Spin Labels
chemical_list: D013113:Spin Labels