Comparing Multiband Single Echo and Multi-echo Sequences With and Without Arterial Spin Labeling for Task Activation

Multi-echo functional MRI has shown increased BOLD sensitivity compared to single echo acquisitions; however, it suffers from increased TR, especially when combined with arterial spin labeling (ASL). This study compared multiband multi-echo scans with and without pseudocontinuous ASL to a multiband single echo acquisition during a visual task. Temporal signal to noise and group task activation was higher for the multi-echo scans. Furthermore, the multi-echo PCASL sequence showed similar activation to multi-echo alone despite significantly higher TR. This study showed the benefits of ME acquisitions for task fMRI, despite higher TR. The addition of ASL did not reduce task activation.