The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 13, 2014
Filed:
Feb. 26, 2010
Andrew J. Wheaton, Shaker Heights, OH (US);
James B. Murdoch, Solon, OH (US);
Andrew J. Wheaton, Shaker Heights, OH (US);
James B. Murdoch, Solon, OH (US);
Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba, Minato-Ku, Tokyo, JP;
Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation, Otawara-Shi, Tochigi, JP;
Abstract
An MRI multi-echo data acquisition sequence (REFUSAL=REFocusing Used to Selectively Attenuate Lipids) includes a spectrally-selective re-focusing RF pulse. The REFUSAL pulse can be non-spatially selective or spatially-selective. The REFUSAL pulse selectively refocuses water spins and avoids refocusing lipid spins. The REFUSAL pulse ideally maximizes refocusing for water and minimizes any lipid refocusing, with built-in robustness to B0-inhomogeneity and B1-inhomogeneity. Following the REFUSAL pulse, the remainder of the echo train continues in a conventional fashion. Only those spins that were refocused with the spectrally selective REFUSAL pulse continue to evolve coherently and generate a train of echoes. Those spins that were minimally refocused are spoiled and thus do not contribute signal to the final image. To incorporate a longer duration REFUSAL pulse, the echo spacing can be made non-uniform such that the first echo spacing is longer than the remainder of the echo spacings in the echo train.