“Good to Know” Canon MRI

Canon’s Good to Know provides simple explanation to complex topic by our expert scientist team. Useful information is presented through handy and printable PDF, short videos and reference links.

WHAT?
Processing of diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) data to calculate Apparent Diffusion Coefficient (ADC) map.

WHY?
To quantify water diffusion within tissues and assess tissue microstructure.

WHEN?
Widely used in neuroimaging, oncology, and body imaging.

WHAT?
A specialized pulse sequence modified from original Look Locker technique for myocardial T1 mapping.

WHY?
T1 measurement could be time consuming due to multiple data acquisition successively after magnetization inversion. MOLLI techniques enable a fast assessment of myocardial T1 in one breath hold.

WHEN?
Myocardial T1 mapping provides a non-invasive quantitative tool for tissue characterization in myocardial disease.

WHAT?
Flow Sensitive Black Blood (FSBB) is sensitive to magnetic susceptibility differences between tissues.

WHY?
To exploit T2*-based dephasing effects and allow the visualization of different substances based on the magnetic field distortions that they produce.

WHEN?
For helping to assess local magnetic susceptibility changes present in multiple neurological conditions such as stroke, traumatic brain injuries, brain tumors, multiple sclerosis and neurodegenerative diseases.

WHAT?
The Shape Coil is part of a new line of coil technology, offering flexibility in design for imaging many regions of the body including the torso, pelvis, joints, bones and extremities.

WHY?
The Shape Coil is flexible, soft, and light. It can be adapted to conform with each patient’s body shape and anatomy to improve patient comfort.

WHEN?
The Shape Coil can be used when more flexibility in positioning, orientation, acceleration, or coverage than traditional rigid or Flex coils is needed

WHAT?
Techniques to suppress the contribution of the adipose tissue from the total MRI signal.

WHY?
To improve contrast-to-noise ratio and the visibility of lesions, as well as to remove artifacts.

WHEN?
For multiple clinical applications (e.g. abdomen, breast and MSK imaging) and applicable to all MRI weightings.s.

WHAT?
Reverse encoding Distortion Correction (RDC) is a technique to reduce geometric distortion in Diffusion Weighted Imaging (DWI).

WHY?
The Echo Planar Imaging (EPI) technique, often used in DWI, is susceptible to distortions, especially in the phase encoding direction.

WHEN?
To reduce distortions in DWI while maintaining a short scan time.

WHAT?
Advanced approach to reduce 3D imaging scan time by utilizing efficient k-space sampling methods.

WHY?
To acquire 3D images faster, with up to about 50 % reduction in the scan time.

WHEN?
Applicable when acquiring 3D volumes in various anatomies. Some examples include brain imaging or abdominal imaging where breath-holds are required.

WHAT?
IMC is a Deep Learning-based motion correction method to improve the quality of images affected by patient motion.

WHY?
Patient motion creates artifacts that can cause images to lose their diagnostic value and may necessitate a repeated scan.

WHEN?
IMC can reduce imaging artifacts from sporadic, rigid, and nonrigid patient motion in fast spin-echo (FSE) sequences. IMC supports multiple imaging weightings such as T2, T1 IR, STIR & FLAIR, and in any plane for brain and cervical spine examinations.

WHAT?
PIQE is a solution designed to increase the reconstructed matrix size, providing finer resolution while maintaining or improving SNR.

WHY?
PIQE can lead to a higher throughput and/or a better clinical confidence.

WHEN?
PIQE can be used on 2D Fast Spin Echo (FSE) sequences, at both 1.5 and 3T, especially when SNR is low but more sharpness is needed.

WHAT?
The standard method for T2 mapping is the multi-echo spin echo sequence to quantify transverse relaxation times (T2) in different tissues.

WHY?
T2 mapping quantitatively assesses tissue properties like water content and collagen structure, enabling objective analysis and enhancing detection of T2 relaxation time changes beyond qualitative signal intensity.

WHEN?
By quantifying T2 relaxation times across different tissues, this method is valuable in detecting abnormalities such as inflammation or fibrosis.

WHAT?
Fast scans of the whole brain every few seconds along a rest-task paradigm or during resting state.

WHY?
To assess neural activity based on the detection of blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) changes.

WHEN?
For multiple purposes such as functional area mapping, evaluation of brain state (related to stroke, trauma or neurodegenerative disorders) and pre-surgical planning.

WHAT?
Two specialized pulse sequences, FFE 3D MPRAGE and MP2RAGE, used in research and clinical settings for neuro-imaging.

WHY?
MPRAGE enables the acquisition of images with high SNR, fast scan time, and excellent tissue contrast.
MP2RAGE enables the detection and characterization of abnormalities in different conditions such as neurodegenerative diseases.

WHEN?
MPRAGE is used for most clinical applications, and it is suitable for advanced post-processing applications such as segmentation.
MP2RAGE is used for T1 mapping and for tissue characterization.

WHAT?
Metal artifact reduction strategies and sequences are designed to reduce susceptibility artifacts caused by the presence of metal in an MR imaging volume.

WHY?
In MRI, most metallic implants cause artifacts which can interfere with the anatomy of interest in the image by causing distortion or signal loss, due primarily to strong magnetic susceptibility.

WHEN?
In patients with metallic implants, artifact reduction techniques are especially useful for reducing the interference of related artifacts thus facilitating a more confident diagnosis.

WHAT?
A family of MR angiography techniques that utilize fresh spins to depict the contrast in blood vessels as an alternative to an injection of an exogenous contrast agent. In particular, Fresh Blood Imaging (FBI), Flow Spoiled FBI (FS-FBI) and Time-Spatial Labeling Inversion Pulse (Time-SLIP), are discussed.

WHY?
Non-contrast angiography (NC-MRA) provides the safest option for MR Angiography. It can exquisitely depict arteries and veins throughout the body in 3 dimensions, while eliminating the need for gadolinium-based contrast agents.

WHEN?
Any time visualization of the arteries or veins is needed for clinical diagnosis and follow-up related to narrowing or blockage of blood vessels, NC-MRA can be used for evaluation. NC-MRA is especially important for those patients who have a contraindication to exogenous contrast agents.

WHAT?
Acquisition of diffusion-weighted images (DWI) using multiple b-values.

WHY?
To improve sensitivity of DWI and obtain further information regarding tissue behavior (apart from pure diffusion).

WHEN?
For several clinical applications and all body regions, but mostly used for oncological purposes.

WHAT?
Elastography is an imaging technique that creates a map where the pixel value represents the stiffness of tissue (measured as the elastic modulus in kilopascals, kPa) at a given location.

WHY?
In many diseases, tissue stiffness can change. For example, stiffness increases with increasing fibrosis, which is directly linked to the clinical outcome of many diseases, such as liver cirrhosis, hepatitis, and steatohepatitis.

WHEN?
MRE is the most effective non-invasive technique for diagnosis, staging, disease monitoring, and treatment follow-up for multiple chronic liver diseases.

WHAT?
An MRI pulse sequence that allows acquisition of multi-echo data with ultra short echo times (TEs).

WHY?
Ultra short TEs allows reception of signals from tissues with short T2* which can not be obtained with conventional field echo (gradient echo) sequences.

WHEN?
UTE multi-echo is available at both 1.5T and 3T and can be used to visualize tissues with short T2* and to generate associated T2* maps.

WHAT?
A deep learning based reconstruction method for MRI that intelligently removes noise while maintaining feature integrity.

WHY?
To increase SNR of the reconstructed images. This increased SNR could be translated to increased resolution and/or shortened scan time. This could also enable high field-like image quality without high-field challenges (e.g. higher cost, B₀ & B₁ inhomogeneity, etc.).

WHEN?
Applicable to all anatomies and available at both 1.5T and 3T, for both wide and narrow bore system.

WHAT?
Arterial Spin Labeling (ASL) method allows quantitative imaging of blood flow perfusion without the use of external contrast agent.

WHY?
Non-contrast angiography (NC-MRA) provides the safest option for MR Angiography. It can exquisitely depict arteries and veins throughout the body in 3 dimensions, while eliminating the need for gadolinium-based contrast agents.

WHEN?
To study perfusion disorders such as stroke or blood flow alterations induced by cancer, epilepsy, and neurodegenerative diseases.

WHAT?
Calculate new diffusion-weighted images from acquired images.

WHY?
To obtain additional diffusion information of the tissues without additional scan time.

WHEN?
Mostly used for oncologic purposes; high b-value images may result in better tumor conspicuity.

WHAT?
Acceleration technique based on incoherent undersampling in k-space.
It relies on the principles of compressed sensing technology.

WHY?
Compressed SPEEDER allows scan time reduction with higher acceleration factors than conventional SPEEDER while avoiding aliasing artifacts.

WHEN?
It is recommended for high-matrix situations, especially when the scanning conditions do not support traditional coil based parallel imaging.

WHAT?
One fat suppression approach based on the difference between the precessional frequencies of fat and water protons.

WHY?
To get a more efficient and reproducible fat signal suppression technique to improve visualization of lesions.

WHEN?

• For varied clinical applications, initially focused on abdominal regions, and then extended to musculoskeletal imaging, such as the neck, spine, the knee, brachial plexus, and the hands.
• Useful when conventional fat suppression technique is not reliable (large FOV, neck and plexus, off-center imaging...)

WHAT?
A single breath-hold multi-echo Field Echo scan to accurately and reliably measure Proton Density Fat Fraction (PDFF) and R2*, even in the presence of increased iron concentration.

WHY?
To simultaneously provide, with one scan, quantitative maps of liver fat and R2*, in- & opposed-phase images, and fat- & water-only images.

WHEN?
Quantifying hepatic fat content and iron accumulation is needed for diagnosis, severity grading, disease monitoring, or treatment response assessment.

WHAT?
MRI images are created by gathering data from what is known in physics as the k-space. Parallel imaging (PI) under-samples data from the k-space by combining signal coming from multiple coils in parallel.

WHY?
By under-sampling data, we can speed-up scan time as less data is required in the acquisition phase.

WHEN?
Parallel Imaging can be used in several ways:
To go faster: higher patient throughput, shorter patient breath-hold, functional MRI, MR Angiography, reduce motion artifacts.
To reduce susceptibility artifacts : single shot EPI with Exsper(diffusion, DTI).