Koninklijke Philips Corporation N.v.

University of Texas System

Mariya Ivanova Doneva

Thomas Erik Amthor

Peter Boernert

Peter Koken

Kay Nehrke

Karsten Sommer

Jochen Keupp

Peter Bornert

Jan Jakob Meineke

Michel Paul Jurriaan Jurrissen

Miha Fuderer

Julien Senegas

Fabian Wenzel

George Randall Duensing

Peter Mazurkewitz

Gabriele Marianne Beck

Christian Stehning

Stefanie Remmele

Peter Börnert

Adrianus Joseph Willibrordus Duijndam

Wim Crooijmans

Nadine Gdaniec

Ivan Pedrosa

Dimitrios Karampinos

Jan Hendrik Wulbern

Miha Federer

Elizabeth Huaroc

Stefan Ruschke

Dominick Johannes Weidlich

Disclosed herein is a medical system () comprising a memory () storing machine executable instructions () and an MRF scoring module (). The MRF scoring module is configured for outputting an MRF quality score () in response to receiving MRF data () as input. The medical system further comprises a computational system () configured for controlling the medical system, wherein execution of the machine executable instructions causes the computational system to: receive () the MRF data; receive () the MRF quality score in response to inputting the MRF data into an MRF scoring module; append () the MRF quality score to the MRF data if the MRF quality score is within a predetermined range (); and provide () a signal () if the MRF quality score is outside of the predetermined range.

Magnetic resonance fingerprinting quality assurance

A medical system including a memory storing machine executable instructions is disclosed. The medical system also includes a computational system. The execution of the machine executable instructions causes the computational system to receive k-space data descriptive of a region of interest of a subject. The k-space data are acquired using a magnetic resonance fingerprinting pulse sequence configured for encoding chemical shifts. The execution of the machine executable instructions also causes the computational system to receive fat peak weights descriptive of a magnetic resonance fat spectrum. The fat peak weights are matched to a pulse train of the magnetic resonance fingerprinting pulse sequence. The execution of the machine executable instructions also causes the computational system to reconstruct a quantitative magnetic resonance image from the k-space data and the fat peak weights.

Quantatative magnetic resonance imaging in the presence of fat

The invention provides for a magnetic resonance imaging system () for acquiring magnetic resonance data () from a subject () within a measurement zone (). The magnetic resonance imaging system () comprises: a processor () for controlling the magnetic resonance imaging system () and a memory () storing machine executable instructions (), pulse sequence commands () and a dictionary (). The pulse sequence commands () are configured for controlling the magnetic resonance imaging system () to acquire the magnetic resonance data () of multiple steady state free precession (SSFP) states per repetition time. The pulse sequence commands () are further configured for controlling the magnetic resonance imaging system () to acquire the magnetic resonance data () of the multiple steady state free precession (SSFP) states according to a magnetic resonance fingerprinting protocol. The dictionary () comprises a plurality of tissue parameter sets. Each tissue parameter set is assigned with signal evolution data pre-calculated for multiple SSFP states.

Multi-state magnetic resonance fingerprinting

The invention provides for a medical imaging system comprising: a memory for storing machine executable instructions; a processor for controlling the medical instrument. Execution of the machine executable instructions causes the processor to: receive MRF magnetic resonance data acquired according to an MRF magnetic resonance imaging protocol of a region of interest; reconstruct an MRF vector for each voxel of a set of voxels descriptive of the region of interest using the MRF magnetic resonance data according to the MRF magnetic resonance imaging protocol; calculate a preprocessed MRF vector () for each of the set of voxels by applying a predetermined preprocessing routine to the MRF vector for each voxel, wherein the predetermined preprocessing routine comprises normalizing the preprocessed MRF vector for each voxel; calculate an outlier map for the set of voxels by assigning an outlier score to the preprocessed MRF vector using a machine learning algorithm.

Anomaly detection using magnetic resonance fingerprinting

The invention relates to a method of MR imaging of an object () placed in an examination volume of a MR device (). It is an object of the invention to enable MR imaging using a radial (or spiral) acquisition scheme with a reduced level of motion artefacts. The method of the invention comprises the following sequence of steps: &#x2014;detecting a momentary motion&#x2014;induced displacement (&#x394;) of the object (); &#x2014;attributing the detected displacement (A) to a motion state (M-M), each motion state (M-M) corresponding to one of a plurality of contiguous ranges of displacements (&#x394;); &#x2014;determining angular coordinates of a radial or spiral k-space profile by incrementing the angular coordinates individually for each motion state (M-M) starting from initial angular coordinates; &#x2014;acquiring the k-space profile; &#x2014;repeating steps a-d a number of times; and &#x2014;reconstructing an MR image from at least the k-space profiles attributed to one of the motion states (M-M). Moreover, the invention relates to a MR device () for carrying out this method as well as to a computer program to be run on a MR device ().

MR imaging using motion-dependent radial or spiral k-space sampling

A method of operating a magnetic resonance imaging system () with regard to acquiring multiple-phase dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance images, the method comprising steps of acquiring () a first set of magnetic resonance image data (x) prior to administering a contrast agent to the subject of interest (), by employing a water/fat magnetic resonance signal separation technique, determining () a first image of the spatial distribution of fat (I) of at least the portion of the subject of interest (), acquiring () at least a second set of magnetic resonance image data (x) of at least the portion of the subject of interest () after administering the contrast agent to the subject of interest (), by employing a water/fat magnetic resonance signal separation technique, determining () at least a second image of the spatial distribution of fat (I) of at least the portion of the subject of interest (), applying () an image registration method to the second image of the spatial distribution of fat (I) with reference to the first image of the spatial distribution of fat (I) for correcting a potential motion of the subject of interest (); and a magnetic resonance imaging system () having a control unit () that is configured to carry out steps (-) of such a method; and a software module () for carrying out such a method, wherein the method steps (-) to be conducted are converted into a program code that is implementable in a memory unit () and is executable by a processor unit () of the magnetic resonance imaging system ().

Method of improved multiple-phase dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging with motion correction using water/fat signal separation

The invention provides for a magnetic resonance imaging system () for acquiring MRF magnetic resonance data () from a subject () within a region of interest (). The magnetic resonance imaging system comprises a processor () for controlling the magnetic resonance imaging system and a memory () for storing machine executable instructions () and MRF pulse sequence commands (). The MRF pulse sequence commands are configured for controlling the magnetic resonance imaging system to acquire the MRF magnetic resonance data according to a magnetic resonance fingerprinting protocol. Execution of the machine executable instructions causes the processor to: acquire () the MRF magnetic resonance data for the region of interest by controlling the magnetic resonance imaging system with the MRF pulse sequence commands; receive () at least one magnetic resonance image () descriptive of the region of interest; identify () anatomical regions () within the region of interest using an anatomical model (); select () a local magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionary () from a set of magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionaries for each of the anatomical regions, wherein the local magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionary comprises a listing of calculated MRF signals for a set of predetermined substances specific to each of the anatomical regions; and calculate () a composition mapping () of the predetermined substances for each of the anatomical regions using the MRF magnetic resonance data and the local magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionary, wherein the composition mapping is a spatial average within each of the anatomical regions.

Selection of magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionaries for anatomical regions

A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system () includes a memory () for storing machine executable instructions () and magnetic resonance fingerprinting (MRF) pulse sequence commands () which cause the MRI system to acquire MRF magnetic resonance data () according to an MRF protocol. The pulse sequence commands are configured for acquiring the MRF magnetic resonance data in two-dimensional slices (), having a slice selection direction. A train of pulse sequence repetitions includes a sampling event where the MRF data is repeatedly sampled. Execution of the machine executable instructions causes a processor to control the MRI system to: acquire () the MRF magnetic resonance data; construct () a series () of at least one magnetic resonance parameter value for each voxel of the two dimensional slices; and calculate () a composition () of each of a set of predetermined substances within two or more sub-voxels () for each voxel of the two dimensional slices using a sub-voxel magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionary () for each of the two or more sub-voxels and the series of the at least one magnetic resonance parameter value. Each voxel in the slice selection direction is divided into two or more sub-voxels.

Sub voxel resolution magnetic resonance fingerprinting imaging

A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system includes a memory for storing machine executable instructions and MRF pulse sequence commands. The MRF pulse sequence commands are configured for controlling the MRI system to acquire MRF magnetic resonance data according to a magnetic resonance fingerprinting protocol. The memory further includes a Fourier transformed magnetic resonance finger printing dictionary. The finger printing dictionary includes entries for at least one intrinsic property.

Magnetic resonance fingerprinting in fourier space

The invention provides for a magnetic resonance imaging system () for acquiring magnetic resonance data () from a subject () within an imaging zone (). The magnetic resonance imaging system comprises a memory () for storing machine executable instructions (), and pulse sequence commands (), wherein the pulse sequence commands are configured to cause the magnetic imaging resonance system to acquire the magnetic resonance data according to a magnetic resonance fingerprinting technique. The pulse sequence commands are further configured to control the magnetic resonance imaging system to perform spatial encoding using a zero echo time magnetic resonance imaging protocol. Execution of the machine executable instructions causes the processor controlling the MRI system to: acquire () the magnetic resonance data by controlling the magnetic resonance imaging system with the pulse sequence commands; and calculate () a spatial distribution () of each of a set of predetermined substances by comparing the magnetic resonance data with a magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionary ().

Silent 3D magnetic resonance fingerprinting

A magnetic resonance imaging system () acquires magnetic resonance data () from a subject () within a measurement zone (). Pulse sequence commands () control the magnetic resonance imaging system to acquire the magnetic resonance data according to a magnetic resonance fingerprinting protocol. The pulse sequence commands are configured for controlling the magnetic resonance imaging system to repeatedly generate an RF pulse train () and acquire the magnetic resonance data as multiple k-space traces. The machine executable instructions causes the processor to: sequentially acquire () the multiple k-space traces of magnetic resonance data by controlling the magnetic resonance imaging system with pulse sequence commands and calculate () the abundance of each of a set of predetermined substances for k-space traces that are acquired after a predetermined number of k-space traces of the multiple k-space traces has been acquired and the acquired magnetization has reached a steady state. The abundance of each of a set of predetermined substances is determined by comparing the magnetic resonance data with a steady state magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionary () which contains a listing of calculated magnetic resonance signals in response to the RF pulse train for a set of predetermined substances.

Steady state magnetic resonance fingerprinting

The invention provides for a method of operating an instrument (). The instrument comprises a magnetic resonance system () for measuring dictionary magnetic resonance data () from a measurement zone (). The magnetic resonance system comprises a magnet () for generating a main magnetic field within the measurement zone. The magnetic resonance system comprises a test fixture () for holding a test sample () within the measurement zone. The test fixture comprises a supplementary magnetic field coil () and a magnetic resonance antenna (). The method comprises the steps of repeatedly: choosing () an electrical current; supplying () the electrical current to the supplementary magnetic field coil to adjust the main magnetic field within the measurement zone; acquiring () the dictionary magnetic resonance data from the test sample with the magnetic resonance antenna by controlling the magnetic resonance system according to a magnetic resonance fingerprinting technique; and appending () the dictionary magnetic resonance data to a magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionary ().

Magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionary generation using a supplementary magnetic field coil

The invention provides for a method of operating a magnetic resonance system for acquiring magnetic resonance data () from a phantom () within a measurement (zone). The phantom comprises a known volume of at least one predetermined substance ((),). The method comprises the step of acquiring () the magnetic resonance data by controlling the magnetic resonance system with pulse sequence instructions (). The pulse sequence instructions cause the magnetic resonance system to acquire the magnetic resonance data according to a magnetic resonance fingerprinting technique. The pulse sequence instructions specify a train of pulse sequence repetitions. Each pulse sequence repetition has a repetition time chosen from a distribution of repetition times. Each pulse sequence repetition comprises a radio frequency pulse chosen from a distribution of radio frequency pulses. The distribution of radio frequency pulses cause magnetic spins to rotate to a distribution of flip angles. Each pulse sequence repetition comprises a sampling event where the magnetic resonance signal is sampled for a predetermined duration at a sampling time before the end of the pulse sequence repetition. The method further comprises determining () one or more performance degradation conditions of the magnetic resonance system by comparing the magnetic resonance data with a magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionary (). The magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionary contains a listing of magnetic resonance signals for a set of system states in response to execution of the pulse sequence instructions for each of the at least one predetermined substance.

MR fingerprinting for determining performance degradation of the MR system

The invention provides for a magnetic resonance imaging system () which comprise a magnet () and a magnetic field gradient generator () for generating a gradient magnetic field within an imaging zone (). The gradient magnetic field is aligned with a predetermined direction. The magnetic resonance imaging system further comprise a memory () for storing machine executable instructions (), a pre-calculated magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionary (), and pulse sequence instructions (). The pulse sequence instructions cause the magnetic resonance imaging system to acquire the magnetic resonance data according to a magnetic resonance fingerprinting technique. The magnetic resonance fingerprinting technique encodes the magnetic resonance data as slices (). The pre-calculated magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionary contains a listing of calculated magnetic resonance signals in response to execution of the pulse sequence instructions for a set of predetermined substances. Execution of the machine executable instructions causes a processor () controlling the magnetic resonance imaging system to: acquire () the magnetic resonance data by controlling the magnetic resonance imaging system with pulse sequence instructions; divide () the magnetic resonance data into a set of slices; calculate () the abundance of each of the set of predetermined substances within each of the set of slices by comparing the magnetic resonance data for each of the set of slices with the pre-calculated magnetic resonance fingerprinting dictionary; and calculate () a magnetic resonance fingerprint chart by plotting abundance of each of the set of predetermined substances within each of the set of slices as a function of position along the predetermined direction.

Magnetic resonance fingerprinting in slices along a one-dimensional extension

A parallel magnetic resonance imaging system () includes at least one radio frequency (RF) coil () with a plurality of coil elements, a smart select unit (), a parallel imaging parameter unit (), and a sequence control (). The smart select unit (), from a pre-scan or prior scan of a subject with the at least one RF coil, constructs () a signal map and a plurality of noise maps based on different sets of reduction factors. The parallel imaging parameter unit () selects a set of reduction factors corresponding to a noise map which includes a highest signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). The sequence control () performs a magnetic resonance imaging scan of the subject based on the selected reduction factors.

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Hamburg, Germany

Mariya Ivanova Doneva