System and method for producing magnetic resonance images with in-plane simultaneous multi-segments and for producing 3D magnetic resonance images with reduced field-of-view
AssigneeThe Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois
InventorsXiaohong Joe Zhou, Kaibao Sun
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Abstract
The present disclosure provides technologies that allow reduced field of view or fast imaging with reduced image distortion. The first technique capitalizes on the benefit of reduced field of view imaging for full field of view coverage. The second technique allows achieves high resolution 3D images in a focused region. These techniques are expected to have applications for cancer imaging, neuro imaging, and other biomedical imaging areas.
Claims19
A method for using an MRI system electrically coupled to a computing device, the method comprising:
- generating (i) a plurality of integrated multi-band excitation two-dimensional (“2D”) radiofrequency (“RF”) pulses comprising a first 2D RF excitation pulse and a second 2D RF excitation pulse and (ii) a plurality of accompanying magnetic field gradients having a plurality of physical gradient axes, and thereby simultaneously exciting a plurality of segments within a first imaging slice, wherein each of the plurality of segments cover a restricted or reduced field-of-view (“rFOV”) within the first imaging slice;
- generating a first set of parallel segments from the plurality of segments in the first slice selected by the first 2D RF excitation pulse, such that adjacent segments in the first set of parallel segments are each spatially separated by a gap, wherein the first set of parallel segments comprise imaging data;
- and
- generating a second set of parallel segments from the plurality of segments in the first slice selected by the second 2D RF excitation pulse, such that adjacent segments in the second set of parallel segments are each spatially separated by a gap, wherein the second set of parallel segments comprise imaging data, wherein the second set of parallel segments spatially interleave within the gaps of the first set of parallel segments thereby resulting in a complete spatial coverage of the first imaging slice.
A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon program instructions that upon execution by a processor, cause performance of a set of steps comprising:
- an MRI system generating a plurality of integrated multi-band excitation two-dimensional (“2D”) radiofrequency (“RF”) pulses comprising a first 2D RF excitation pulse and a second 2D RF excitation pulse, together with a plurality of accompanying magnetic field gradients having a plurality of physical gradient axes, thereby simultaneously exciting a plurality of segments within a first imaging slice, wherein each of the plurality of segments cover a restricted or reduced field-of-view (“rFOV”) within the first imaging slice;
- the MRI system generating a first set of parallel segments from the plurality of segments in the first slice selected by the first 2D RF excitation pulse, such that adjacent segments in the first set of parallel segments are each spatially separated by a gap, wherein the first set of parallel segments comprise imaging data;
- and
- the MRI system generating a second set of parallel segments from the plurality of segments in the first slice selected by the second 2D RF excitation pulse, such that adjacent segments in the second set of parallel segments are each spatially separated by a gap, wherein the second set of parallel segments comprise imaging data, wherein the second set of parallel segments spatially interleave within the gaps of the first set of parallel segments thereby resulting in a complete spatial coverage of the first imaging slice.
A method for using an MRI system electrically coupled to a computing device, the method comprising:
- targeting at least one zoomed three-dimensional (“3D”) volume within an object;
- and
- generating (i) a two-dimensional (“2D”) excitation radiofrequency (“RF”) pulse, (ii) a first magnetic field gradient in a first dimension and a second magnetic field gradient in a second dimension, and thereby exciting a first slab along the first dimension having a restricted field-of-view (“rFOV”) along the second dimension in a slab plane, and (iii) a third magnetic field gradient that is arranged along the first dimension perpendicular or normal to the slab plane, and thereby phase-encoding an MRI signal emitted from the first slab, via the third magnetic field gradient, to provide spatial encoding in a through-slab direction.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.