Abstract #3610

Slice-Specific Gradient Compensation of Magnetic Field Inhomogeneities to Improve T2*-Weighted Imaging of the Human Spinal Cord

Jrgen Finsterbusch^1,2, Falk Eippert^1,2

¹Department of Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany; ²Neuroimage Nord, University Medical Centers Hamburg-Kiel-Lbeck, Hamburg-Kiel-Lbeck, Germany

BOLD-based spinal cord imaging suffers from the magnetic field inhomogeneities induced by the different susceptibilities of the vertebrae and the surrounding tissue. In T2*-weighted acquisitions, these inhomogeneities cause a signal dephasing that varies between different transverse sections. In this study, it is shown that applying slice-specific gradient compensation moments reduce the signal variations and drop outs which could help to improve the detectability and reliability of BOLD-based functional neuroimaging of the spinal cord.