Effects of B1 Correction on the Accuracy of T1, T2 and ADC Values Measured with a Diffusion-Weighted Dual-Echo Steady-State (DW-DESS) Sequence

Diffusion-weighted dual-echo steady-state (DW-DESS) imaging allows multiple MR parameters to be quantified without image distortion. In this work, we investigate the effects of B1 correction on the accuracy of T1, T2 and ADC parameters estimated from DW-DESS. We extend the quantification to species with ADC and T2 values that are similar human cancers by using a novel phantom mixture. The accuracy of parameter estimates measured with DW-DESS is improved after B1 correction, with correlation coefficients of 0.912, 0.997 and 0.778 without B1 correction to 0.993, 0.998 and 0.947 after B1 correction (for T1, T2 and ADC, respectively).