Application of magnetization transfer at 3.0 T in three‐dimensional time‐of‐flight magnetic resonance angiography of the intracranial arteries

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Abstract
Purpose: To apply magnetization transfer (MT) at 3.0 T in three‐dimensional time‐of‐flight magnetic resonance angiography of the intracranial arteries.Materials and Methods: This study was performed on phantoms and seven volunteers to determine the effects of MT at 3.0 T. By using a modulated MT approach and an altered phase encode order, the specific absorption rate (SAR) was kept below 3 W/kg over any 8‐second time period.Results: For a 20‐degree flip angle and 36 msec repetition time, the background suppression at 3.0 T was improved with MT by 52 ± 5% for white matter and 40 ± 8% for grey matter, making the distal intracranial vasculature significantly more discernible.Conclusions: MT at 3.0 T can significantly improve background suppression in 3D time‐of‐flight magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) of the intracranial arteries without exceeding SAR guidelines. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2002;15:479–483.