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Kim, Lee, Kim, Cho, and Lee: Impact of the Parameter Variation on the Image Blurring in 3 T Magnetic Resonance Imaging: A Phantom Study
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Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology

Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology 2013; 68(4): 355-362.

Published online: 10 April 2013

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3348/jksr.2013.68.4.355

Impact of the Parameter Variation on the Image Blurring in 3 T Magnetic Resonance Imaging: A Phantom Study

Jong Woo Kim, MD, Sang Hoon Lee, MD, Namkug Kim, PhD, Kyung-Sik Cho, MD, Jin Seong Lee, MD

Department of Radiology and Research Institute of Radiology, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Asan Medical Center, Seoul, Korea.

Corresponding author: Sang Hoon Lee, MD. Department of Radiology and Research Institute of Radiology, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Asan Medical Center, 88 Olympic-ro 43-gil, Songpa-gu, Seoul 138-736, Korea. Tel. 82-2-3010-4400, Fax. 82-2-476-4719, shlee@amc.seoul.kr

Received 1 May 2012       Accepted 22 February 2013

Copyright © 2013 The Korean Society of Radiology

(open-access):

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

Purpose

To evaluate the effects of the key imaging-parameter alterations on the four MR sequences in a phantom study.

Materials and Methods

Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging was performed on a MR phantom with an 8-channel head coil by using a 3 T MR system. The images were obtained in the axial plane on four MR sequences [T1-weighted, T2-weighted, Proton-density, and 3 dimensional (3D) fast spin echo (FSE)] with controlled variations in the following key parameters: 1) echo train length (ETL), 2) repetition time (TR), and 3) echo time (TE). The image blurring was determined by the degree of the gradient angle; i.e., the blurring increased as the gradient angle decreases.

Results

The increasing ETL was observed to cause an increase in the image blurring on all pulse sequences with a statistical significance (p = 0.004) on the 3D FSE. Increasing the TR appeared to have no effect except a statistically significant decrease on the T1-weighted images (p = 0.011). Increasing TE showed no effect on the T1-weighted images (p = 0.932); however, it caused an increase of blurring on the proton density images (p = 0.016) as well as the T2-weighted images (p < 0.001), and a decrease on the 3D FSE (p = 0.001).

Conclusion

To reduce the image blurring, short ETL and long TE for 3D FSE, long TR for T1-weighted images and short TE for proton-density and T2-weighted images should be applied.

Keywords: Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Phantom Study, Image Blurring, Echo Train Length

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