Cookies on this website

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you click 'Accept all cookies' we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies and you won't see this message again. If you click 'Reject all non-essential cookies' only necessary cookies providing core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility will be enabled. Click 'Find out more' for information on how to change your cookie settings.

Cerebrovascular reactivity mapping (CVR), using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and carbon dioxide as a stimulus, provides useful information on how cerebral blood vessels react under stress. This information has proven to be useful in the study of vascular disorders, dementia and healthy ageing. However, clinical adoption of this form of CVR mapping has been hindered by relatively long scan durations of 7-12 min. By replacing the conventional block presentation of carbon dioxide enriched air with a sinusoidally modulated stimulus, the aim of this study was to investigate whether more clinically acceptable scan durations are possible. Firstly, the conventional block protocol was compared with a sinusoidal protocol of the same duration of 7 min. Estimates of the magnitude of the CVR signal (CVR magnitude) were found to be in good agreement between the stimulus protocols, but estimates of the relative timing of the CVR response (CVR phase) were not. Secondly, data from the sinusoidal protocol was reanalysed using decreasing amounts of data in the range 1-6 min. The CVR magnitude was found to tolerate this reduction in scan duration better than CVR phase. However, these analyses indicate that scan durations in the range of 3-5 min produce robust data.

Original publication

DOI

10.1016/j.neuroimage.2017.07.048

Type

Journal article

Journal

Neuroimage

Publication Date

01/10/2017

Volume

159

Pages

214 - 223

Keywords

BOLD, Cerebrovascular reactivity, Hypercapnia challenge, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Brain, Brain Mapping, Cerebrovascular Circulation, Humans, Hypercapnia, Magnetic Resonance Imaging