title: Strategies for improved 3D small-tip fast recovery imaging.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Small-tip fast recovery (STFR) imaging is a recently proposed steady-state sequence that has similar image contrast as balanced steady-state free precession but has the potential to simultaneously remove banding artifacts and transient fluctuation. STFR relies on a "tip-up" radiofrequency (RF) pulse tailored to the accumulated phase during the free precession (data acquisition) interval, designed to bring spins back to the longitudinal axis, thereby preserving transverse magnetization as longitudinal magnetization for the next pulse repetition time. We recently proposed an RF-spoiled STFR sequence suitable for thin slab imaging, however, in many applications, e.g., functional magnetic resonance imaging or isotropic-resolution structural imaging, three-dimensional (3D) steady-state imaging is desirable. Unfortunately, 3D STFR imaging is challenging due to the need for 3D tailored RF pulses. Here, we propose new strategies for improved 3D STFR imaging, based on (i) unspoiled imaging, and (ii) joint design of nonslice-selective tip-down/tip-up RF pulses.
  
  
  METHODS
  We derive an analytic signal model for the proposed unspoiled STFR sequence, and propose two strategies for designing the 3D tailored tip-down/tip-up RF pulses. We validate the analytic results using phantom and in vivo imaging experiments.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Our analytic model and imaging experiments demonstrate that the proposed unspoiled STFR sequence is less sensitive to tip-up excitation error compared to the corresponding spoiled sequence, and may, therefore, be an attractive candidate for 3D imaging. The proposed "joint" RF pulse design method, in which we formulate the tip-down/tip-up RF pulse design task as a magnitude least squares problem, produces modest improvement over a simpler "Separate" design approach. Using the proposed unspoiled sequence and joint RF pulse design, we demonstrate proof-of-principle 3D STFR brain images with balanced steady-state free precession-like signal properties but with reduced banding.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Using the proposed unspoiled sequence and joint RF pulse design, STFR brain images in a 3D region of interest with balanced steady-state free precession-like signal properties but with reduced banding can be obtained.
authors.affiliation: Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Jeffrey A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Fessler
authors.forename: Douglas C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Noll
authors.forename: Jon-Fredrik
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Nielsen
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D001921:Brain / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods*; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional / Q000379:methods*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D019047:Phantoms, Imaging; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
keywords: balanced steady-state free precession; banding artifact; pulse design; small-tip fast recovery; steady-state magnetic resonance imaging