QSM

QSM maps local tissue magnetic susceptibility within the brain to provide quantitative, reproducible susceptibility maps for research and clinical applications.

Key Features:

• Automated Reconstruction: Automated reconstruction from acquired data via a server capable of exchanging images with the scanner using the DICOM standard.
• Multi-Site, Multi-Vendor Reproducibility: Demonstrated high reproducibility in a multi-site study across nine locations and three scanner manufacturers.
• Resolution Protocols: Supports HiRes (0.5 × 0.5 × 1 mm³) and StdRes (0.5 × 0.5 × 3 mm³) acquisition protocols.
• Reconstruction Efficiency: Uses GPU acceleration with reported reconstruction times of 29 ± 22 seconds for StdRes and 55 ± 39 seconds for HiRes.

Scientific Applications:

• Disease Research: Provides magnetic susceptibility maps for studying various brain diseases with reproducible measures across sites.
• Clinical Translation: Automated reconstruction and integration with scanner workflows support translation of QSM into clinical settings.

Methodology:

Data are acquired using a 3D multi-echo gradient echo sequence; an automated server system processes images and exchanges data with the scanner via DICOM. GPU-accelerated reconstruction yields reported times of 29 ± 22 s (StdRes) and 55 ± 39 s (HiRes). Reproducibility was assessed by ROI analysis across white matter and gray matter with ROI standard deviations below 24 ppb for StdRes and 17 ppb for HiRes and ROI-average correlations of 0.92 (StdRes) and 0.96 (HiRes). A retrospective image-quality review reported 96% of clinical QSM images as diagnostic or excellent.