A modular system of flexible receive-only coil arrays for 3 T Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

Flexible form-fitting radiofrequency coils provide high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and in array configuration large anatomical areas of interest can be covered. We propose a modular system - "ModFlex"- of flexible lightweight 4-channel coaxial coil arrays for 3 T MRI. We investigated the performance difference between commercial reference coils and 8- and 16-channel ModFlex receive-only array systems. In vivo, six anatomical targets in four regions of interest - the neck, the ankle, the spine and the hip - were imaged with the novel coil array system. The versatility of ModFlex and the robustness of the coil characteristics for different use cases is demonstrated. We measured an SNR gain for 4 out of 6 and similar SNR for 2 out of 6 anatomical target regions as compared to commercial reference coils. Parallel imaging capabilities are comparable to standard coils in hip and neck imaging, but ModFlex outperforms standard coils in ankle and spine imaging. High SNR combined with high acceleration possibilities enables faster imaging workflows and/or high-resolution MR acquisitions. The coil's versatility is beneficial for use cases with varying subject sizes and could improve patient comfort.

Panoramic Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Breast With a Wearable Coil Vest.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer, the most common malignant cancer in women worldwide, is typically diagnosed by x-ray mammography, which is an unpleasant procedure, has low sensitivity in women with dense breasts, and involves ionizing radiation. Breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the most sensitive imaging modality and works without ionizing radiation, but is currently constrained to the prone imaging position due to suboptimal hardware, therefore hampering the clinical workflow. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this work is to improve image quality in breast MRI, to simplify the clinical workflow, shorten measurement time, and achieve consistency in breast shape with other procedures such as ultrasound, surgery, and radiation therapy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: To this end, we propose "panoramic breast MRI"-an approach combining a wearable radiofrequency coil for 3 T breast MRI (the "BraCoil"), acquisition in the supine position, and a panoramic visualization of the images. We demonstrate the potential of panoramic breast MRI in a pilot study on 12 healthy volunteers and 1 patient, and compare it to the state of the art. RESULTS: With the BraCoil, we demonstrate up to 3-fold signal-to-noise ratio compared with clinical standard coils and acceleration factors up to 6 × 4. Panoramic visualization of supine breast images reduces the number of slices to be viewed by a factor of 2-4. CONCLUSIONS: Panoramic breast MRI allows for high-quality diagnostic imaging and facilitated correlation to other diagnostic and interventional procedures. The developed wearable radiofrequency coil in combination with dedicated image processing has the potential to improve patient comfort while enabling more time-efficient breast MRI compared with clinical coils.