Method and device for phase-sensitive flow measurement by magnetic resonance

A magnetic resonance system for phase-sensitive flow measurement of a volume segment of an examination subject by magnetic resonance, comprising:

• a magnetic resonance data acquisition unit having a data acquisition coordinate system comprising three orthogonal spatial directions and adapted to receive a patient therein, said data acquisition unit comprising an RF system that excites nuclear spins in a predetermined volume of the examination subject that comprises a flow therein, exciting nuclear spins in the examination subject to cause emission of magnetic resonance signals from the volume, and that receives said magnetic resonance signals;
• said magnetic resonance data acquisition unit comprising a gradient coil system and a gradient control unit that operates said gradient coil system to generate imaging magnetic field gradients with an orientation that spatially encodes said magnetic resonance signals along said three orthogonal spatial directions;
• said gradient control unit also being configured to operate said gradient coil system to phase code flow information, representing the flow in the volume, by, in successive respective steps, superimposing a first flow information phase coding gradient and a second flow information phase coding gradient and a third flow information phase coding gradient on said imaging magnetic field gradients, said first flow information phase coding gradient being effective only in a first direction of said spatial directions, said second flow information phase coding gradient being effective only in a second direction of said spatial directions, and said third flow information phase coding gradient being effective only in a third direction of said spatial directions;
• said gradient control unit also being configured to operate said gradient coil system to read out said spatially encoded magnetic resonance signals and said phase coded flow information from said volume, to obtain magnetic resonance data;
• and
• a computerized processor supplied with said magnetic resonance data and said flow information, said computerized processor being configured to generate image data from said magnetic resonance data that represent an image of said volume with said flow information, and to make said image data available as a data file at an output of said processor.

A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium encoded with programming instructions, said storage medium being loaded into a computerized operating and evaluation system of a magnetic resonance system, said magnetic resonance system comprising a magnetic resonance data acquisition unit having a data acquisition coordinate system comprising three orthogonal spatial directions, said programming instructions causing said computerized operating and evaluation system to:

• operate the magnetic resonance data acquisition unit with a patient located therein, to excite nuclear spins in a predetermined volume of the examination subject that comprises a flow therein, to cause emission of magnetic resonance signals from the volume;
• operate said magnetic resonance data acquisition unit to generate imaging magnetic field gradients with an orientation that spatially encodes said magnetic resonance signals along said three orthogonal spatial directions;
• operate said magnetic resonance data acquisition unit to phase code flow information, representing the flow in the volume, by, in successive respective steps, superimposing a first flow information phase coding gradient and a second flow information phase coding gradient and a third flow information phase coding gradient on said imaging magnetic field gradients, said first flow information phase coding gradient being effective only in a first direction of said spatial directions, said second flow information phase coding gradient being effective only in a second direction of said spatial directions, and said third flow information phase coding gradient being effective only in a third direction of said spatial directions;
• operate said magnetic resonance data acquisition unit to read out said spatially encoded magnetic resonance signals and said phase coded flow information from said volume, to obtain magnetic resonance data;
• and
• generate image data from said magnetic resonance data that represent an image of said volume with said flow information, and make said image data available as a data file at an output of said processor.