Sean Fain1, Rafael O'Halloran2,
Eric Peterson3, James Holmes4
1Medical Physics, University of
Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, WI, United States; 2Radiology,
Stanford University, Stanford, CA, United States; 3Biomedical
Engineering, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, WI, United States; 4Applied
Science Lab, GE Healthcare, Madison, WI, United States
Assessment
of lung function in pediatrics poses significant challenges due to variable
ability to cooperate with respiratory maneuvers. Radial dynamic 3D imaging using multi-echo
VIPR (ME-VIPR) acquisition with HP He-3 and I-HYPR reconstruction is used in
a protocol designed to minimize breath-hold time for whole lung coverage with
good isotropic resolution, and sufficient temporal resolution to adapt to the
subject's ability to perform respiratory maneuvers. Diffusion-weighted MRI
with HP He-3 MRI also provides a means to assess microstructure of the lung
parenchyma without ionizing radiation. Preliminary results in 40 pediatric
subjects at-risk for asthma are presented.