Abstract #1130

High-resolution quantitative magnetic resonance imaging of the human cervical spinal cord at 7T

Aurélien Massire^1,2,3, Manuel Taso^1,2,3,4, Maxime Guye^1,2, Jean-Philippe Ranjeva^1,2,3, and Virginie Callot^1,2,3

¹Centre de Résonance Magnétique Biologique et Médicale (CRMBM), UMR 7339, CNRS, Aix-Marseille Université, Marseille, France, ²Centre d'Exploration Métabolique par Résonance Magnétique (CEMEREM), Hôpital de la Timone, Pôle d’imagerie médicale, AP-HM, Marseille, France, ³iLab-Spine - Laboratoire international - Imagerie et Biomécanique du rachis, Marseille, France, ⁴LBA, UMR T24, Aix-Marseille Université, IFSTTAR, Marseille, France

A high-resolution multi-parametric MRI protocol dedicated to 7T cervical spinal cord (SC) investigation using a commercial prototype transceiver radiofrequency coil array is proposed. This work pushes forward SC quantitative MRI by reporting T₁/T₂/T₂^* relaxation times mapping as well as diffusion tensor imaging metrics at the C3 cervical level on a cohort of ten healthy volunteers. Automatic segmentation and registration of these multi-parametric acquisitions to SC templates enable group studies with quantitative evaluation within regional WM tracts and GM horns never reported so far at 7T. This study lays the groundwork for improved characterization of degenerative SC pathologies at ultra-high field.

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