Coronary artery imaging using three‐dimensional breath‐hold steady‐state free precession with two‐dimensional iterative partial fourier reconstruction

AbstractPurposeTo assess the feasibility of using a two‐dimensional partial Fourier (PF) reconstruction scheme to reduce the acquisition time of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of coronary arteries.Materials and MethodsSymmetric k‐space data sets of coronary arteries were collected in seven volunteers using a three‐dimensional breath‐hold steady‐state free precession (SSFP) sequence. Partial, asymmetric k‐space data sets were generated by removing 25% of the data in the readout direction and 25% of the data in the phase encoding direction. The missing data were then estimated using a two‐dimensional projection‐onto‐convex‐sets (POCS) algorithm or filled with zeroes. Images were reconstructed from the full data set, the PF data set, and the zero‐filled (ZF) data set, respectively. Coronary artery sharpness was evaluated quantitatively and qualitatively.ResultsCoronary artery sharpness in PF images was comparable to that in full k‐space images and significantly better than that in ZF images.ConclusionTwo‐dimensional POCS PF reconstruction is a potentially useful technique for reducing acquisition time or improving spatial resolution for breath‐hold coronary MR angiography. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2004;19:645–649. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

Coronary artery imaging using three‐dimensional breath‐hold steady‐state free precession with two‐dimensional iterative partial fourier reconstruction Journal Articles