The Influence of Echo Train Duration on Heavily T2-weighted-dimensional MR Cholangiopancreatography Using Turbo Spin-echo Technique: A Phantom Study

Abstract

Magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) is a valuable non-invasive technique that depicts bile or pancreatic juice as hyperintense in heavily T2-weighted images. Data acquisition in the three-dimensional multi-slice MRCP method is acquired with respiratory triggered. Echo train duration (ETD) is the data acquisition time every breath is in inverse proportion to total acquisition time, and has influence of image contrast and spatial resolution in turbo spin echo (TSE) imaging. Therefore, the effects of image contrast and spatial resolution of three-dimensional heavily T2-weighted variable refocusing flip angle TSE images on ETD in fundamental and clinical settings were measured using a phantom. No significant difference was detected with regard to image contrasts. Increasing ETD reduced spatial resolution, but no significant difference was detected regarding visual evaluation in the fundamental setting. On the other hand, in some of the clinical settings, increasing ETD with phase partial Fourier (PPF) reduced spatial resolution. The study result indicates that changing ETD fitting respiratory state of individual examinee without PPF is useful for optimized acquisition time without sacrificing image contrast and spatial resolution.