Dataset Information

Multicenter Evaluation of Geometric Accuracy of MRI Protocols Used in Experimental Stroke.

ABSTRACT: It has recently been suggested that multicenter preclinical stroke studies should be carried out to improve translation from bench to bedside, but the accuracy of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners routinely used in experimental stroke has not yet been evaluated. We aimed to assess and compare geometric accuracy of preclinical scanners and examine the longitudinal stability of one scanner using a simple quality assurance (QA) protocol. Six 7 Tesla animal scanners across six different preclinical imaging centers throughout Europe were used to scan a small structural phantom and estimate linear scaling errors in all orthogonal directions and volumetric errors. Between-scanner imaging consisted of a standard sequence and each center's preferred sequence for the assessment of infarct size in rat models of stroke. The standard sequence was also used to evaluate the drift in accuracy of the worst performing scanner over a period of six months following basic gradient calibration. Scaling and volumetric errors using the standard sequence were less variable than corresponding errors using different stroke sequences. The errors for one scanner, estimated using the standard sequence, were very high (above 4% scaling errors for each orthogonal direction, 18.73% volumetric error). Calibration of the gradient coils in this system reduced scaling errors to within ±1.0%; these remained stable during the subsequent 6-month assessment. In conclusion, despite decades of use in experimental studies, preclinical MRI still suffers from poor and variable geometric accuracy, influenced by the use of miscalibrated systems and various types of sequences for the same purpose. For effective pooling of data in multicenter studies, centers should adopt standardized procedures for system QA and in vivo imaging.

SUBMITTER: Milidonis X

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5014410 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Multicenter Evaluation of Geometric Accuracy of MRI Protocols Used in Experimental Stroke.

Milidonis Xenios X Lennen Ross J RJ Jansen Maurits A MA Mueller Susanne S Boehm-Sturm Philipp P Holmes William M WM Sena Emily S ES Macleod Malcolm R MR Marshall Ian I

PloS one 20160907 9

It has recently been suggested that multicenter preclinical stroke studies should be carried out to improve translation from bench to bedside, but the accuracy of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners routinely used in experimental stroke has not yet been evaluated. We aimed to assess and compare geometric accuracy of preclinical scanners and examine the longitudinal stability of one scanner using a simple quality assurance (QA) protocol. Six 7 Tesla animal scanners across six different prec ...[more]

PMID: 27603704

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Project description:PURPOSE:To determine the in vitro accuracy, test-retest repeatability, and interplatform reproducibility of T1 quantification protocols used for dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI at 1.5 and 3?T. METHODS:A T1 phantom with 14 samples was imaged at eight centers with a common inversion-recovery spin-echo (IR-SE) protocol and a variable flip angle (VFA) protocol using seven flip angles, as well as site-specific protocols (VFA with different flip angles, variable repetition time, proton density, and Look-Locker inversion recovery). Factors influencing the accuracy (deviation from reference NMR T1 measurements) and repeatability were assessed using general linear mixed models. Interplatform reproducibility was assessed using coefficients of variation. RESULTS:For the common IR-SE protocol, accuracy (median error across platforms?=?1.4-5.5%) was influenced predominantly by T1 sample (P?<?10-6 ), whereas test-retest repeatability (median error?=?0.2-8.3%) was influenced by the scanner (P?<?10-6 ). For the common VFA protocol, accuracy (median error?=?5.7-32.2%) was influenced by field strength (P?=?0.006), whereas repeatability (median error?=?0.7-25.8%) was influenced by the scanner (P?<?0.0001). Interplatform reproducibility with the common VFA was lower at 3?T than 1.5?T (P?=?0.004), and lower than that of the common IR-SE protocol (coefficient of variation 1.5T: VFA/IR-SE?=?11.13%/8.21%, P?=?0.028; 3?T: VFA/IR-SE?=?22.87%/5.46%, P?=?0.001). Among the site-specific protocols, Look-Locker inversion recovery and VFA (2-3 flip angles) protocols showed the best accuracy and repeatability (errors?<?15%). CONCLUSIONS:The VFA protocols with 2 to 3 flip angles optimized for different applications achieved acceptable balance of extensive spatial coverage, accuracy, and repeatability in T1 quantification (errors?<?15%). Further optimization in terms of flip-angle choice for each tissue application, and the use of B1 correction, are needed to improve the robustness of VFA protocols for T1 mapping. Magn Reson Med 79:2564-2575, 2018. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

Project description:To evaluate the geometric accuracy of beam targeting in external surrogate-based gated volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) using kilovoltage (kV) x-ray images acquired during dose delivery.Gated VMAT treatments were delivered using a Varian TrueBeam STx Linac for both physical phantoms and patients. Multiple gold fiducial markers were implanted near the target. The reference position was created for each implanted marker, representing its correct position at the gating threshold. The gating signal was generated from the RPM system. During the treatment, kV images were acquired immediately before MV beam-on at every breathing cycle, using the on-board imaging system. All implanted markers were detected and their 3D positions were estimated using in-house developed software. The positioning error of a marker is defined as the distance of the marker from its reference position for each frame of the images. The overall error of the system is defined as the average over all markers. For the phantom study, both sinusoidal motion (1D and 3D) and real human respiratory motion was simulated for the target and surrogate. In the baseline case, the two motions were synchronized for the first treatment fraction. To assess the effects of surrogate-target correlation on the geometric accuracy, a phase shift of 5% and 10% between the two motions was introduced. For the patient study, intrafraction kV images of five stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) patients were acquired for one or two fractions.For the phantom study, a high geometric accuracy was achieved in the baseline case (average error: 0.8 mm in the superior-inferior or SI direction). However, the treatment delivery is prone to geometric errors if changes in the target-surrogate relation occur during the treatment: the average error was increased to 2.3 and 4.7 mm for the phase shift of 5% and 10%, respectively. Results obtained with real human respiratory curves show a similar trend. For a target with 3D motion, the technique is able to detect geometric errors in the left-right (LR) and anterior-posterior (AP) directions. For the patient study, the average intrafraction positioning errors are 0.8, 0.9, and 1.4 mm and 95th percentile errors are 1.7, 2.1, and 2.7 mm in the LR, AP, and SI directions, respectively.The correlation between external surrogate and internal target motion is crucial to ensure the geometric accuracy of surrogate-based gating. Real-time guidance based on kV x-ray images overcomes the potential issues in surrogate-based gating and can achieve accurate beam targeting in gated VMAT.

Dataset Information

Multicenter Evaluation of Geometric Accuracy of MRI Protocols Used in Experimental Stroke.

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Multicenter Evaluation of Geometric Accuracy of MRI Protocols Used in Experimental Stroke.

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