Whole Brain Arterial Transit Times in the Elderly Estimated Using Arterial Spin Labeling

Henri J.M.M. Mutsaerts¹, Edo Richard², Dennis F.R. Heijtel¹, Charles B.L.M. Majoie¹, Aart J. Nederveen¹

Transit time measurements may not only improve the quantification of arterial spin labeling but also provide valuable diagnostic information that is unavailable with cerebral blood flow measurements alone. This study estimates micro-vascular arterial transit time by Flow-Encoding Arterial Spin Tagging (FEAST) in a large sample of community-dwelling elderly. The measured transit times show a consistent spatial pattern and depend on age and gender. If no transit time maps are available, our linear regression parameters provide an alternative to a fixed transit time.