• Sibel Bayramoglu, Ozgür Kilickesmez, Tan Cimilli, Arda Kayhan, Gülseren Yirik, Filiz Islim, and Sedat Alibek.
• Department of Radiology, Bakirkoy Dr Sadi Konuk Research and Training Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey.
• Acad Radiol. 2010 Mar 1; 17 (3): 368-74.

Rationale And ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to compare four different fat-suppressed T2-weighted sequences with different techniques with regard to image quality and lesion detection in upper abdominal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans.Materials And MethodsThirty-two consecutive patients referred for upper abdominal MRI for the evaluation of various suspected pathologies were included in this study. Different T2-weighted sequences (free-breathing navigator-triggered turbo spin-echo [TSE], free-breathing navigator-triggered TSE with restore pulse (RP), breath-hold TSE with RP, and free-breathing navigator-triggered TSE with RP using the periodically rotated overlapping parallel lines with enhanced reconstruction technique [using BLADE, a Siemens implementation of this technique]) were used on all patients. All images were assessed independently by two radiologists. Assessments of motion artifacts; the edge sharpness of the liver, pancreas, and intrahepatic vessels; depictions of the intrahepatic vessels; and overall image quality were performed qualitatively. Quantitative analysis was performed by calculation of the signal-to-noise ratios for liver tissue and gallbladder as well as contrast-to-noise ratios of liver to spleen.ResultsLiver and gallbladder signal-to-noise ratios as well as liver to spleen contrast-to-noise ratios were significantly higher (P < .05) for the BLADE technique compared to all other sequences. In qualitative analysis, the severity of motion artifacts was significantly lower with T2-weighted free-breathing navigator-triggered BLADE sequences compared to other sequences (P < .01). The edge sharpness of the liver, pancreas, and intrahepatic vessels; depictions of the intrahepatic vessels; and overall image quality were significantly better with the BLADE sequence (P < .05).ConclusionThe T2-weighted free-breathing navigator-triggered TSE sequence with the BLADE technique is a promising approach for reducing motion artifacts and improving image quality in upper abdominal MRI scans.

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