Theoretical limits of spatial resolution in elliptical-centric contrast-enhanced 3D-MRA

The point spread function (PSF) for contrast enhanced three-dimensional (3D ) MR angiography using the elliptical centric view order is derived. This v iew order has been shown previously to provide high Venous suppression ther eby enabling long acquisition times capable of high spatial resolution. The dependence of the PSF on TR, field of view (FOV), scan time, and trigger t ime are shown explicitly Theoretical predictions are corroborated with expe rimental results in phantoms and in vivo. The PSF width decreases as the sq uare root of the product of TR and the two phase encoding FOV's for fixed n ominal voxel size. The PSF peak amplitude increases as the reciprocal of th is product. Theory and experiment demonstrate that acquisition times over 4 0 sec provide superior resolution compared to shorter acquisitions, despite falling levels of contrast agent concentration. The analysis predicts that an isotropic spatial resolution of 1 mm before zero filling is possible in a FOV large enough to encompass the carotid and vertebral arteries bilater ally. (C) 1999 Wiley-Liss, Inc.