TABLE 1:
Protocol for Routine 7-T Brain MRI Without IV Contrast Medium
| Sequence | Plane | Slice Thickness (mm) | Matrix | FOV (mm) | Interslice Distance (%) | Voxel Size (mm) | Acq Time (min:s) | TR/TE (ms) | Accel Fac | Interpolation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| ||||||||||
| 3D FS T1-weighted MP-RAGE | Sagittal | 0.3 | 224 × 224 | 150 | 50 | 0.3 × 0.3 × 0.3 | 6:32 | 3000/2.49 | GRAPPA 3 | Yes |
| FS FLAIR | Axial | 2.0 | 320 × 256 | 220 | 20 | 0.7 × 0.7 × 2.0 | 3:38 | 9000/74 | GRAPPA 3 | No |
| FS T2-weighted TSE | Axial | 3.0 | 704 × 704 | 210 | 30 | 0.1 × 0.1 × 3.0 | 6:08 | 3900/61 | GRAPPA 3 | Yes |
| T2*-weighteda | Axial | 1.5 | 620 × 620 | 210 | 0 | 0.2 × 0.2 × 1.5 | 9.35 | 1080/20 | GRAPPA 3 | No |
| DWI RESOLVE | Axial | 2.0 | 192 × 144 | 230 | 20 | 1.2 × 1.2 × 2.0 | 2:49 | 6200/46 and 72 | Slice accel 3 | No |
| SWI | Axial | 1.4 | 640 × 640 | 220 | 20 | 0.2 × 0.2 × 1.4 | 6:28 | 22/15 | GRAPPA 3 | Yes |
Note—Protocol is used to evaluate for CNS pathology in such settings as headache, trauma, dizziness, confusion, dementia, and transient ischemic attack and in situations when IV contrast media are contraindicated. Total acquisition time is approximately 25 minutes. Acq = acquisition, Accel Fac = acceleration factor, FS = fat-saturated, TSE = turbo spin-echo, RESOLVE = readout segmentation of long variable echo trains, SWI = susceptibility-weighted imaging.
Optional; susceptibility effect same as for SWI; T2 signal identical to that of FS T2-weighted TSE. Sequence may thus be performed in place of separate dedicated FS T2-weighted TSE and SWI acquisitions, although the sequence may be more challenging to perform given its long acquisition time.