RESUMEN

BACKGROUND: T2 mapping is a valuable technique in cardiac MR imaging that offers insights into the microstructural characteristics of myocardial tissue. However, it was shown that myocardial T2 relaxation times (T2 ) measured vary significantly depending on sequence, sequence parameters, and field strength. PURPOSE: To assess T2 variability and image quality in cardiac T2 maps using four variants of the gradient-spin echo (GraSE) sequence, having different methods of blood signal suppression (double inversion recovery (DIR) and improved motion-sensitized driven equilibrium (iMSDE) and with and without the addition of fat saturation (FS). STUDY TYPE: Prospective. POPULATION: 48 healthy volunteers (46.7 +/- 21.5 years, 24 male) with no cardiac history. FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE: GraSE sequence with DIR (GraSEDIR ), with iMSDE (GraSEiMSDE ) and FS (GraSEDIR -FS) and with both iMSDE and FS (GraSEiMSDE -FS) at 1.5T. ASSESSMENT: Global T2 from three short axis myocardial slices. and image quality assessments using a 5-point Lickert scale (1, (non-diagnostic) to 5, (excellent)) were conducted to evaluate the impact of DB and FS techniques on myocardial T2 measurements and image quality. STATISTICAL TESTS: Paired t-tests or non-parametric equivalents for comparisons between sequences. The Bland-Altmann plots and Pearson rank correlation analyses, as appropriate. A P value <0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: The mean global T2 values for GraSEDIR , GraSEDIR -FS, GraSEiMSDE , and GraSEiMSDE -FS, were 52.84 ± 5.72 msec, 54.98 ± 3.59 msec, 53.9 ± 4.05 msec, and 55.14 ± 4.28 msec, respectively, with no significant differences (P = 0.092). High image quality scores (>4 out of 5) were obtained for all sequence variants with no significant differences between them (P = 0.11). DATA CONCLUSION: All GraSE sequence variants exhibited approximately the same results and variations in the DB technique and addition of FS did not have significant impact on myocardial T2 values. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 2 TECHNICAL EFFICACY: Stage 1.