Trigeminal Nerve Image Quality Comparison Of The CAIPIRINHA-accelerated CISS-3D And The Conventional CISS-3D Sequence At 3.0T MRI

Purpose:To evaluate the imaging quality of the trigeminal nerve between controlled aliasing in parallel imaging results in higher acceleration(CAIPIRINHA)accelerated constructive interference in the steady state-3D and conventional CISS-3D that without acceleration factors under the same magnetic resonance parameters at 3.0T.And compared the difference between the two sequences for the diagnostic accuracy of the responsible blood vessels of patients with trigeminal neuralgia and the comfort of examination.Material and methods:8 normal volunteers and 38 patients were examined with conventional CISS-3D and CAPIRINHA-accelerated CISS-3D sequences at 3.0 T scanner(MAGNETOM Spectra,Siemens AG,Erlangen,Germany).The trigeminal nerve was scanned and the imaging quality of the two sequences was statistically compared.The methods of comparison include qualitative analysis and quantitative analysis.Qualitative analysis the MRI images of all subjects were independently and subjectively graded by two doctors using the five-point method including the trigeminal ganglion display,surrounding anatomy,and artifacts,etc.Quantitative analysis includes measuring the signal-to-noise ratio(SNR)of the image,and the contrast-to-noise ratio(CNR)to compare the imaging quality of the two sequences,The morphological changes of the trigeminal nerve length,width,angle and the cross-sectional area of the cerebellopontine pool were measured to evaluate the repeatability and consistency of the CAPIRINHA-accelerated CISS-3D sequences.The clinical diagnosis results were used as a standard to compare the diagnostic accuracy of the two sequences for diagnosing responsible vessels.Compared the comfort of the two sequence tests by random questionnaire.Results:There was no statistical difference in the image quality score(qualitative and quantitative analysis)between the CAPIRINHAaccelerated CISS-3D sequences and the conventional CISS-3D sequence(P>0.05).The CAIPIRINHA accelerated CISS-3D sequence has good consistency with the conventional CISS-3D sequence in measuring the morphological changes of trigeminal nerve,and the CAIPIRINHA accelerated CISS-3D sequence has good repeatability(the mean line is close to 0,and most dispersion points are within 1.96 times standard deviation line).In terms of finding responsible vessels,the sensitivity and specificity of the two sequences were not significantly different(the sensitivity was 75% and the specificity was 100%).In a survey examining comfort,we found that the CAIPIRINHA accelerated CISS-3D sequence not only reduced scanning time but also scored lowerin comfort than the conventional CISS-3D sequence,In addition,the comfort scores of patients in the two sequences were statistically significant(P<0.05).Conclusion:Compared with conventional CISS-3D sequence,the CAIPIRINHA accelerated CISS-3D sequence can not only significantly shorten the scanning time,but also has good consistency and repeatability without reducing the image quality.Moreover,the two sequences have no significant difference in the diagnostic accuracy of the responsible vessels in patients with trigeminal neuralgia.