MR Fingerprinting: A Novel Sequence Applied to Neuroimaging

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) has become one of most important medical imaging tools over the past 30 years because it is non-invasive, requires no ionizing radiation, and provides exquisite images of soft tissues and anatomic structures with many tissue/disease specific contrasts. While MRI has served the community well for many years, it is increasingly clear that it also has significant limitations. One of the principle limitations is the lack of quantitative information for tissue/structure characterization. The current paradigm of MRI is to use a set of scanner settings to generate an image weighted by a specific MR contrast mechanism (physical parameter), where it is hoped that variations in the parameter will be accentuated. However, without quantitative knowledge of the parameters, the final image contrast may depend on many factors, which complicates image interpretation and diagnostic performance. Quantitative measurement can provide a great deal of information about tissue properties and pathological conditions, since these parameters ultimately determine the contrast that is observed in conventional images.

Detailed Description
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The purpose of this study is to evaluate novel quantitative MRI techniques in clinical studies to determine whether they can provide better, faster and more useful information for clinical diagnosis. Quantitative MRI has been a continuous interest in the MRI community, but extremely challenging due to long acquisition times and sensitivity to motion. Recently, the investigators have introduced a novel MRI data acquisition approach, namely MR Fingerprinting (MRF), for simultaneous measurement of several important parameters in a single MRI scan. In this study, the investigators propose to apply MR Fingerprinting at UNC and evaluate its performance for different neurological diseases. The investigators hypothesize that the quantitative MR imaging technique will lead to improved tissue characterization and diagnosis.

Official Title
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MR Fingerprinting: A Novel Sequence Applied to Neuroimaging

Conditions
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Disease;Neurological

Intervention / Treatment
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* Device: MR Fingerprinting


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: The study will include English-speaking patients that are already scheduled to undergo a clinical neurological MRI for diagnostic purposes. Exclusion Criteria: Pregnant women will be excluded.

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 18 Years
Maximum Age: 99 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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No

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Primary Purpose: Other
Intervention Model: Single Group Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Experimental: All Participants<br>All participants will receive the investigational MR Fingerprinting sequence. | Device: MR Fingerprinting<br>* The MR fingerprinting technique requires less than 15 minutes and will be added following the standard MRI sequence.<br>|

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Percent of Participants With Visible Region of Interest (Imaging Visibility) | Magnetic Resonance (MR) fingerprinting sequences will be examined to determine their utility for visualizing pathology. | Immediately following MRI completion, within approximately 5 minutes |