title: Breast MRI at 7 Tesla with a bilateral coil and robust fat suppression.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To develop a bilateral coil and fat suppressed T1-weighted sequence for 7 Tesla (T) breast MRI.
  
  
  METHODS
  A dual-solenoid coil and three-dimensional (3D) T1w gradient echo sequence with B1+ insensitive fat suppression (FS) were developed. T1w FS image quality was characterized through image uniformity and fat-water contrast measurements in 11 subjects. Signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and flip angle maps were acquired to assess the coil performance. Bilateral contrast-enhanced and unilateral high resolution (0.6 mm isotropic, 6.5 min acquisition time) imaging highlighted the 7T SNR advantage.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Reliable and effective FS and high image quality was observed in all subjects at 7T, indicating that the custom coil and pulse sequence were insensitive to high-field obstacles such as variable tissue loading. 7T and 3T image uniformity was similar (P=0.24), indicating adequate 7T B1+ uniformity. High 7T SNR and fat-water contrast enabled 0.6 mm isotropic imaging and visualization of a high level of fibroglandular tissue detail.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  7T T1w FS bilateral breast imaging is feasible with a custom radiofrequency (RF) coil and pulse sequence. Similar image uniformity was achieved at 7T and 3T, despite different RF field behavior and variable coil-tissue interaction due to anatomic differences that might be expected to alter magnetic field patterns.
authors.affiliation: Bernard and Irene Schwartz Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Ryan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: Pippa
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Storey
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Geppert
authors.forename: KellyAnne
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: McGorty
authors.forename: Ana Paula
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Klautau Leite
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Babb
authors.forename: Daniel K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Sodickson
authors.forename: Graham C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Wiggins
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Moy
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001940:Breast / Q000473:pathology*; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003287:Contrast Media; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D059629:Signal-To-Noise Ratio; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D003287:Contrast Media
keywords: RF coil; bilateral breast magnetic resonance imaging; breast cancer; fat suppression; high-field MRI