Cost-Efficient 7ch Rx Shoulder Array for 7T UHF MRI Featuring External Switchbox Detuning
Stefan HG Rietsch1,2, Oliver Kraff1, Stephan Orzada1, Andrea Lazik3, and Harald H Quick1,2

1Erwin L. Hahn Institute for MR Imaging, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany, 2High Field and Hybrid MR Imaging, University Hospital Essen, Essen, Germany, 3Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Hospital Essen, Essen, Germany

Synopsis

MRI at 7T and above opens the field for high resolution human imaging for example in the shoulder. In order to improve a present setup consisting of an 8ch Tx/Rx shoulder coil using microstrip line elements with meanders, we present an additional low cost 7ch Rx loop coil and utilize a simple approach for detuning of this coil during transmit via a custom built 8ch Tx/Rx switchbox. With the additional 7ch Rx coil a factor of 2 in SNR can be achieved in the center of the humeral head in proton-density weighted images with a spatial resolution of 0.4x0.4x2.5 mm3.

Purpose

MRI at 7 Tesla (T) and above opens the field for high resolution human imaging. In 7T musculoskeletal imaging, radiofrequency (RF) coil designs have recently been proposed to depict the shoulder joint1,2. Here, high spatial resolution as well as high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) are necessary to examine subtle pathologies like partial tears of the rotator cuff or tiny structures like ligaments as well as the very thin cartilage on a submillimeter scale. Transmit/receive (Tx/Rx) RF coils1 can be used for spin excitation and for signal reception, yet, for optimum SNR and to achieve higher acceleration, local receive (Rx) coils3 enable further improvement of the imaging capabilities. Often, Tx/Rx switchboxes are utilized to connect Tx/Rx coils to the RF high power side during transmit and to the preamplifiers during reception. Consequently, these switchboxes are normally available at 7T sites when custom built RF coils are used. In this work, we present a 7ch Rx-only coil which is integrated into an existing 8ch Tx/Rx setup for shoulder imaging at 7T. A simple and cost efficient way of detuning the 7ch Rx coil during transmit is employed.

Material and Methods

Fabrication of the 7ch Rx coil was straightforward using only standard coil building parts (wire, capacitors, semi rigid cable, printed boards). A rounded PMMA housing was used to comfortably fit the arm and shoulder of the patient (Figure 1A). The loops were made of insulated copper wires and small printed boards (Figure 1B). By overlapping nearest neighbors, geometric decoupling was achieved which is supplemented by preamplifier decoupling. Cable traps (BalUn) were placed at each loop 1 cm away from the feeding point and at the end of the housing. Measurements were acquired on a 7T whole-body research system (Magnetom 7T, Siemens Healthcare GmbH, Erlangen, Germany). The hardware setup consisted of an 8ch Tx/Rx switchbox (switchbox 1) connected to the 8ch Tx/Rx shoulder coil with meander elements1, and a second 8ch Tx/Rx switchbox (switchbox 2) connected to the 7ch Rx coil. Detuning of the 7ch Rx coil during transmit was accomplished by placing a short semi rigid cable with a variable trimming capacitor between inner and outer conductor at the transmit side of switchbox 2 (Figure 1C). This was evaluated on a phantom. Finally, 7T MRI in vivo measurements (healthy male volunteer, 32y, 79 kg, 178 cm) were performed using a clinical proton-density weighted TSE sequence with and without fat saturation.

Results and Discussion

With a Q-ratio of 2.49 ± 0.07 the loops operate in the body-noise dominated regime. S-parameters (Figure 2A) measured on an average male volunteer (178 cm, 70 kg) resulted in an average reflection of Sxx = -16.3 ± 3.4 dB (maximum S22 = -13.4 dB) and an inter element coupling of Sxy = -17.1 ± 4.8 dB (maximum S37 = -9.6 dB). For the 7ch Rx coil preamp decoupling of 8.5 ± 0.7 dB allowed for additional decoupling while reception and a detuning of 9.8 ± 0.7 dB was achieved by the chosen detuning strategy using trimmers on the transmit side of switchbox 2. The noise correlation matrix (Figure 2B) indicates a maximum of 0.43 for channel 6 and 7. To quantify the SNR gain (Figure 3), SNR maps using both coils for reception were divided by SNR maps acquired with the 8ch Tx/Rx coil only. A factor of 2 was obtained in the humeral head by adding the 7ch Rx coil elements. A comparison of the maximum g-factor values for an acceleration of R = 2 (with/without 7ch Rx coil) yielded 1.57/2.14 in the anterior-posterior, 1.46/2.16 in the head-feet and 1.95/2.16 in left-right direction. The phase encoding directions were aligned according to the anatomy of the volunteer and less according to the placement of the coil elements. Proton-density weighted TSE sequences with and without fat saturation showed enhanced image quality in coronal, transversal and sagittal slice orientation with improvement in signal intensity of several structures (Figure 4). Imaging of pathologies like partial muscle tears or early stages of fatty atrophy can expectedly be improved when using the Rx coil.

Conclusion

A 7ch low cost Rx array for 7T has been presented which allows for further improvement of high resolution examinations of the shoulder with clinically acceptable image quality. External detuning via a custom built 8ch Tx/Rx switchbox is possible and allows for a detuning of about -10 dB. This setup paves the way to conduct clinical shoulder studies on a 7T system with diagnostic image quality.

Acknowledgements

No acknowledgement found.

References

1. Kraff O, Orzada S, Choukri M, Fischer A, Ladd SC, Ladd ME, Bitz AK. 7 Tesla MRI of the shoulder and upper extremities using an 8-channel Tx/Rx Coil. Proc. Intl. Soc. Mag. Reson. Med. 20 #306 (2012)

2. Brown R, Deniz CM, Zhang B, Chang G, Sodickson DK, Wiggins GC. Design and Application of Combined 8-Channel Transmit and 10-Channel Receive Arrays and Radiofrequency Shimming for 7-T Shoulder Magnetic Resonance Imaging. Invest Radiol. 49(1): 35–47 (2014)

3. Roemer PB, Edelstein WA, Hayes CE, Souza SP, Mueller OM. The NMR Phased Array. MRM 16, 192-225 (1990).

Figures

Figure 1: Housing of the 7chRx coil (A) and loops oriented in hexagonal shape (B). Detuning is accomplished by trimmers on the transmit side of a custom built 8chTx/Rx switchbox (arrows in C). For 7T measurements (D) the 7chRx coil (arrow) is positioned anterior on the volunteer’s shoulder.

Figure 2: S-parameter matrix (A) for the 7chRx coil measured on the shoulder of a volunteer reveals a maximum reflection of S22 = -13.4dB and a maximum coupling of S37 = -9.6dB. The noise correlation matrix (B) from the volunteer measurement indicates low noise correlation between the two coils.

Figure 3: SNR gain maps in paracoronal (A), transversal (B) and parasagittal (C) slice orientation. As soon as the color differs from the background the 7chRx coil boosts the SNR. This is most prominent near the surface, but it can also be observed in deeper regions.

Figure 4: Comparison for a proton-density weighted TSE sequence (0.4x0.4x2.5mm3, TR/TE = 4350/30ms, TA = 3:55min) of a healthy volunteer with fat saturation (A,B,D,E) and without (C,F). High SNR gain is visible in the M. Deltoideus (star in D, E) and the M. Pectoralis major (star in F).



Proc. Intl. Soc. Mag. Reson. Med. 24 (2016)
2142