Abstract #2520

MacKay A, Bjarnason T, Pike G, Chia C

The feasibility of myelin water fraction (MWF) measurements in multi-centre studies requires an assessment of cross-site stability in T2 distributions. We acquired T2 relaxation data in a healthy subject using two protocols at two sites and compared the T2 distributions and MWFs in six white and grey matter ROIs. MWFs estimated from data acquired with the same protocol but different sites were in reasonable agreement. However, alternate protocols and MWF estimation methods produced large variations in the estimated MWF. Consistent acquisition protocols and analysis methods are essential in multi-center MWF studies as is a rigorous assessment of cross-site variability.