Comparison of CAIPIRINHA-VIBE, Radial-VIBE, and conventional VIBE sequences for dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) MRI: A validation study using a DCE-MRI phantom

Objective: To validate radial acquisition of volumetric interpolated breath hold examination (Radial-VIBE) and the controlled aliasing in parallel imaging results in higher acceleration (CAIPIRINHA-VIBE) sequences for dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI (DCE-MRI) by comparing them to conventional VIBE sequence using a phantom. Methods: On a DCE-MRI phantom containing various concentrations of NiCl₂ solutions, six minutes of dynamic series and T1 mapping with variable flip angle methods were acquired using conventional VIBE, Radial-VIBE, and CAIPIRINHA-VIBE sequences on 3.0-T scanners. Signal stability and signal linearity were tested for dynamic series and the precision of R1 values were tested for T1 mapping series. The scans were repeatedly performed at two weeks and three months to test repeatability/reproducibility, assessed by within-subject coefficient of variation (WSCV). Results: Signal stability over six minutes was excellent in all three sequences. Regarding the signal linearity, CAIPIRINHA-VIBE demonstrated the highest linear correlation (r = 0.963), followed by conventional VIBE (r = 0.959) and Radial-VIBE (r = 0.953). Regarding the R1 precision, CAIPIRINHA-VIBE (r = 0.985) was the most accurate, followed by conventional VIBE (r = 0.861) and Radial-VIBE (r = 0.442). CAIPIRINHA-VIBE showed excellent repeatability/reproducibility (WSCV, 1.79-6.71%) compared with Radial-VIBE (WSCV, 2.04-67.2%) and conventional VIBE (WSCV, 3.4-31.9%). Conclusion: In terms of signal stability, signal linearity, R1 precision, and repeatability/reproducibility, CAIPIRINHA-VIBE demonstrated outstanding performance for DCE-MRI compared with Radial-VIBE and conventional VIBE.