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Balanced steady-state free precession (bSSFP) can be used as an alternative to gradient-echo (GE) EPI for BOLD functional MRI when image distortions and signal drop-outs are severe such as at ultra-high field. However, 3D-bSSFP acquisitions have distinct drawbacks on either human or animal MR systems. On clinical scanners, 3D imaging is suboptimal for localized fMRI applications. It can also display distortions when acceleration methods such as spiral read-outs are used, and, compared to multi-slice acquisitions, suffers from increased sensitivity to motion or physiological noise which further results in blurring. On pre-clinical systems, 3D acquisitions have low temporal resolution due to limited acceleration options, while single slice often results in insufficient coverage. The aim of the present study was to implement a multi-slice bSSFP acquisition with Cartesian read-out to obtain non-distorted BOLD fMRI activation maps in the human and rat brain at ultra-high field. We show that, when using a new pseudo-steady-state, the bSSFP signal characteristics are preserved. In the human brain at 7 T, we demonstrate that both task- and resting-state fMRI can be performed with multi-slice bSSFP, with a temporal SNR that matches that of 3D-bSSFP, resulting in – at least – equal performance. In the rat brain at 14 T, we show that the multi-slice bSSFP protocol has similar sensitivity to gradient-echo EPI for task fMRI, while benefitting from much reduced distortions and drop-outs. The advantages of passband bSSFP at 14 T in comparison with GE-EPI are expected to be even more marked for mouse brain.

International audience; This research is focused on segmentation of the heart ventricles from volumes of Multi Slice Computerized Tomography (MSCT) image sequences. The segmentation is performed in three-dimensional (3-D) space aiming at recovering the topological features of cavities. The enhancement scheme based on mathematical morphology operators and the hybrid-linkage region growing technique are integrated into the segmentation approach. Several clinical MSCT four dimensional (3-D + t) volumes of the human heart are used to test the proposed segmentation approach. For validating the results, a comparison between the shapes obtained using the segmentation method and the ground truth shapes manually traced by a cardiologist is performed. Results obtained on 3-D real data show the capabilities of the approach for extracting the ventricular cavities with the necessary segmentation accuracy.

Congenital coronary artery anomaly occurs infrequently in general population, and they are present at birth, but relatively few are symptomatic during childhood. Most coronary anomalies are discovered as incidental findings during coronary angiography. Their clinical relevance varies widely. They

Background Non-Cartesian parallel imaging is a promising approach for reducing the scan time in multi-slice first-pass myocardial perfusion imaging, allowing increasing volumetric coverage in comparison with standard techniques. Through-time radial GRAPPA has previously been demonstrated for real-time functional cardiac imaging [Seiberlich, et al. MRM 2011 Feb;65 (2):492-505]. In this work, the through-time radial GRAPPA technique is applied for the acquisition of fifteen slices per heartbeat during a contrast-enhanced myocardial perfusion examination.

Biomedical Engineering, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA Figure 1 MSRLL pulse sequence. After 90° non-slice selective saturation pulses, 10 sequential multi-slice FLASH acquisitions separated by an interval τ were applied. Each block on the relaxation curve represents a multi-slice acquisition module. Jiang and Yu Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance 2014, 16(Suppl 1):W35 http://www.jcmr-online.com/content/16/S1/W35

Background: Fractional low reserve (FFR) assessment using multi-slice computed tomography (MSCT) with computational dynamic low simulation is emerging as a non-invasive anatomical and functional assessment tool in patients with narrowed native coronary arteries. The noninvasive FFR assessment methods can be applied in the vessel previously treated with fully bioresorbable scaffolds made of polylactides, since unlike metallic stents the coronary artery is free from blooming artifacts caused by metal. The objective of this study was therefore to show the feasibility of non-invasive FFR assessment in patients who had received fully bioresorbable everolimus-eluting ABSORB scaffolds 5 years before.