Designing and comparing optimized pseudo-continuous Arterial Spin Labeling protocols for measurement of cerebral blood flow.

ABSTRACT: Arterial Spin Labeling (ASL) is a non-invasive, non-contrast, perfusion imaging technique which is inherently SNR limited. It is, therefore, important to carefully design scan protocols to ensure accurate measurements. Many pseudo-continuous ASL (PCASL) protocol designs have been proposed for measuring cerebral blood flow (CBF), but it has not yet been demonstrated which design offers the most accurate and repeatable CBF measurements. In this study, a wide range of literature PCASL protocols were first optimized for CBF accuracy and then compared using Monte Carlo simulations and in vivo experiments. The protocols included single-delay, sequential and time-encoded multi-timepoint protocols, and several novel protocol designs, which are hybrids of time-encoded and sequential multi-timepoint

SUBMITTER: Woods JG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7762814 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature