Mapping transmit and receive B1 using variable flip angle acquisition on a person-by-person basis for hyperpolarized Carbon-13 and Xenon-129 MRI
Yeung K., Ravetz Z., Ng KL., AbuEid G., Hickes W., Jacob K., Danisa M., Durrant M., Mills R., Shinozaki A., McGing J., Axford A., Birkhoelzer S., Schulte R., Rider O., McIntyre A., Fraser E., Tyler D., Gleeson F., Grist J.
Hyperpolarized MRI allows the imaging of processes such as gas exchange and metabolism. Calibration of transmit and receive (Tx/Rx) B1 is required to account for coil inhomogeneities in reconstruction. A variable flip angle (VFA) method, which is fast and readily implemented, allows for a simultaneous B1/T1 measurement. In this study, a mathematical model of VFA calibration was developed, tested, validated in a hyperpolarized Carbon-13 (13C) phantom and in vivo with hyperpolarized Xenon-129 imaging of human lungs.