Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE · 2006 · 12 citations · 0 references
MedicineBiomedical EngineeringRadiologyBiomedical ImagingDiagnostic ImagingDiagnostic RadiologyMagnetic Resonance ImagingMagnetic Resonance Imaging PhysicsMedical ImagingGeometry FactorImage Noise AssessmentImage Noise EstimationMagnetic Resonance Imaging AcquisitionParallel ImagingParallel ScanSignal-to-noise RatioSignal-to-noise Ratio Assessment
We devised two kinds of new methods for accurate measurement of the image signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in parallel magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) because image noise of the parallel MRI was not spatially constant. Using the first (Consecutive) method, more than fifty consecutive scans of the uniform phantom were obtained with identical scan parameters. Then the SNRs in each pixel were calculated from the ratio of mean signal intensity to the standard deviation of the time domain on a pixel-by-pixel. With the second (Remove) method, the phantom was removed after the first scan, and the second scan was done with identical parameters and the RF coil loading device. The SNRs in each pixel were then obtained from the ratio of the signal intensity of the first scan to the second scan (w/o phantom) image which was multiplied by the square root of 2/pi and filtered by the running mean (7 by 7 pixels). Moreover, actual geometry factors were calculated from image SNRs of parallel and no parallel MRI. The image SNR and actual geometry factor of parallel MRI with the Consecutive method agreed with that of the Remove method. The SNRs of the no parallel MRI with the above two methods conformed with that of the conventional SNR method (NEMA standard). Both new methods make it possible to obtain a more detailed determination of SNR in parallel MRI, and to calculate the actual geometry factor.