title: Hyperecho PROPELLER-MRI: Application to rapid high-resolution motion-insensitive T2-weighted black-blood imaging of the carotid arterial vessel wall and plaque.
abstract: To demonstrate the usefulness of hyperecho and PROPELLER (HEP) for carotid arterial vessel wall imaging by using a quantitative comparison with conventional methods. PROPELLER is a motion-insensitive turbo spin-echo (TSE) sequence and has recently been utilized in magnetic resonance (MR) plaque imaging instead of double inversion recovery TSE (DIR-TSE). Wider blade-width, higher k-space density, and an improved blood suppression effect result in better image quality. In this study we introduce a new combination of HEP.
  
  
  
  A total of 17 subjects were examined on a 3.0T system. We conducted quantitative comparisons for signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), contrast-to-noise-ratio, and image sharpness among HEP, DIR-TSE, and conventional PROPELLER (c-PROPELLER). Subsequently, images obtained with DIR-TSE, c-PROPELLER, and HEP were visually evaluated using a three-point scale by two board-certified radiologists.
  
  
  
  HEP showed high SNR similar to c-PROPELLER, good T2contrast approximating DIR-TSE, and better blood suppression compared with the other two methods (P < 0.05). The image sharpness of HEP (2.55 ± 0.53) was higher than that of DIR-TSE (1.89 ± 0.33) and the absence of ghost or streak artifacts in HEP (2.89 ± 0.33) was better than that in both other methods (2.22 ± 0.83 for DIR-TSE and 2.00 ± 0.50 for c-PROPELLER) (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the degree of blood suppression, particularly in cases of slow or turbulent flow close to the atherosclerotic plaque, was identical for HEP (2.80 ± 0.45) and DIR-TSE (2.80 ± 0.45) but was significantly better than for c-PROPELLER (1.60 ± 0.55) (P < 0.05).
  
  
  
  This study demonstrates the usefulness of HEP in the carotid arteries. HEP can provide higher-resolution T2-weighted black-blood imaging without flow- and/or motion-related artifacts, compared to conventional techniques.
  
  
  
  3 J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2017;45:515-524.
authors.affiliation: Philips Electronics Japan, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Masami
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yoneyama
authors.affiliation: Philips Electronics Japan, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Masanobu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.affiliation: Philips Electronics Japan, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Obara
authors.affiliation: Philips Healthcare Asia Pacific, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomoyuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Okuaki
authors.affiliation: Yaesu Clinic, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Ryuji
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sashi
authors.affiliation: Yaesu Clinic, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Seishi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sawano
authors.affiliation: Yaesu Clinic, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Satoshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tatsuno
authors.affiliation: Philips Healthcare Asia Pacific, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Van Cauteren
mesh_terms: D002339:Carotid Arteries / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D016893:Carotid Stenosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods*; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D018810:Magnetic Resonance Angiography / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009038:Motion; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted
keywords: PROPELLER MRI; TRAPS; black-blood; carotid plaque imaging; hyperecho; vessel wall imaging