Bilateral MRI RF Coil Underlap for High-Resolution Breast Imaging
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current MRI mammography techniques face challenges in achieving high temporal and spatial resolution during bilateral breast imaging, often requiring trade-offs between spatial resolution and acquisition time, and may result in patient discomfort and artifacts due to suboptimal coil arrangements.
Innovation Solution
The use of an underlapped arrangement of RF coils, where each coil is configured to oppose and receive one breast, allowing for simultaneous high-resolution sagittal imaging with minimal patient movement and reduced artifacts, enabling higher temporal and spatial resolution through parallel imaging techniques.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If axial and coronal slices are used for bilateral breast imaging, then the imaging coverage is sufficient, but the spatial resolution and acquisition efficiency are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The breast imaging is divided into separate left and right breast volumes, with dedicated RF coils for each breast. This segmentation allows simultaneous acquisition of both breasts with high spatial resolution by assigning specific coil elements to specific breast regions, avoiding the need to compromise resolution for acquisition speed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from traditional axial/coronal planar imaging to sagittal slice imaging. This dimensional change enables simultaneous capture of both breasts in a single acquisition sequence, improving acquisition efficiency while maintaining high spatial resolution through the optimized sagittal plane geometry.
2Measurement precision
If high resolution imaging mode is used, then spatial resolution is improved, but acquisition time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the imaging of both breasts into a single simultaneous acquisition sequence using parallel RF coils. By combining left and right breast imaging in one scan, the total acquisition time is reduced compared to sequential scanning, while maintaining high spatial resolution through the parallel imaging capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes parallel imaging techniques that change the imaging parameters by introducing multiple RF coil elements with different sensitivity profiles. This allows acceleration of the acquisition process while maintaining resolution through mathematical reconstruction algorithms that compensate for the reduced sampling.
3Loss of time
If a single large volume encompassing both breasts is prescribed, then acquisition time is reduced, but spatial resolution and signal-to-noise ratio deteriorate due to aliasing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent assigns different RF coils with optimized sensitivity profiles to specific breast regions. Each coil is tailored to the local anatomy of its assigned breast, providing optimal signal reception and spatial resolution for that specific region, thereby avoiding the uniform low-resolution compromise of a single large volume approach.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces parallel imaging reconstruction algorithms as intermediaries that process the aliased data from the single large volume acquisition. These algorithms use the known sensitivity maps of the RF coils to separate and reconstruct the left and right breast images with high spatial resolution, effectively mediating between the simplified acquisition and the required high-resolution output.
4Measurement precision
If RF coils are positioned to optimize signal reception, then signal-to-noise ratio is improved, but patient comfort decreases due to coil pressure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the coil system into separate left and right breast coils, each optimized for its specific breast region. This segmentation allows each coil to be positioned optimally for signal reception without requiring the patient to bear the weight of a large unified coil assembly, thereby maintaining patient comfort while achieving high signal-to-noise ratio.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration allows for efficient acquisition of high-resolution images from both breasts simultaneously with minimal increase in acquisition time, improved signal-to-noise ratio, and reduced artifacts, enhancing image quality and patient comfort.
Implementation Method 1
The transverse component of the magnetization can be detected through the use of an RF antenna or receiver coil, which is specifically tuned to the resonate frequency of the precessing spins
Implementation Method 2
An MRI system uses a static magnetic field B0 to align magnetic spins in the direction of the field
Implementation Method 3
A rotating RF field B1 applied perpendicular to the B0 field will cause the spins to rotate into the transverse field at a resonant frequency
Data Source
AI summary
An assembly of RF coils for bilateral imaging of a first and a second breast of the same person is disclosed. The assembly includes a first pair of coils having a first coil juxtaposed and underlapping a second coil, thereby defining juxtaposed edges of the first and second coils, and a second pair of coils having a third coil juxtaposed and underlapping a fourth coil, thereby defining juxtaposed edges of the third and fourth coils. The first coil has a first opening for receiving the first breast, the second coil has a second opening for receiving the second breast, the third coil substantially opposes the first coil, defining therebetween a first region for receiving the first breast, and the fourth coil substantially opposes the second coil, defining therebetween a second region for receiving the second breast.