Original Research MRCP Imaging at 3.0 T vs. 1.5 T: Preliminary Experience in Healthy Volunteers Hiroyoshi Isoda, MD, PhD, * Masako Kataoka, MD, PhD, Yoji Maetani, MD, PhD, Aki Kido, MD, PhD, Shigeaki Umeoka, MD, PhD, Ken Tamai, MD, Takashi Koyama, MD, PhD, Yuji Nakamoto, MD, PhD, Yukio Miki, MD, PhD, Tsuneo Saga, MD, PhD, and Kaori Togashi, MD, PhD Purpose: To evaluate the impact of magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) imaging at 1.5T and 3.0T on image quality. Materials and Methods: Fourteen volunteers were exam- ined at both 1.5T and 3.0T using MRCP imaging performed with a breath-held two-dimensional (2D) half-Fourier ac- quired single-shot turbo spin-echo (HASTE) thick-slab se- quence, a free-breathing navigator-triggered three-dimen- sional (3D) turbo spin-echo (TSE) sequence with prospective acquisition correction, and a heavily T2- weighted (T2W) sequence with breath-held multislice HASTE. All images were scored for visualization of the bil- iary and pancreatic ducts, severity of artifacts, image noise, and overall image quality. Results: MRCP imaging at 3.0T yielded a significant im- provement in overall image quality compared to 1.5T. We found a trend for superior visualization of the biliary and pancreatic ducts at 3.0T. Heavily T2W imaging with thin sections (1.4 mm) at 3.0T provided diagnostic images and better visualization of the biliary and pancreatic ducts than heavily T2W imaging with standard sections (2.8 mm) at 3.0T. Conclusion: Our experience suggests that MRCP imaging at 3.0T has the potential to provide excellent images. High- resolution heavily T2W imaging with a small voxel size (1.3  1.3  1.4 mm) at 3.0T can provide diagnostic images and allow evaluation of small pathologies of the bile and pancreatic ducts, which 1.5T MRI cannot sufficiently visu- alize. Key Words: high field; high resolution; magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography; image quality; heavily T2- weighted sequence J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2007;25:1000 –1006. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. MR CHOLANGIOPANCREATOGRAPHY (MRCP) is ac- cepted as an effective imaging modality for the evalua- tion of biliary and pancreatic disorders (1,2). The spa- tial and contrast resolutions of MRCP imaging are important for detecting small pathologies, such as small stones and mural nodules in pancreatic cystic lesions, and evaluating anatomy, such as the biliary tree in a normal liver donor population. Image quality in MRI of the abdomen has been improved by recent tech- nical developments, such as a more powerful gradient system, receiver coils, and the use of parallel-imaging and respiratory-monitoring techniques (3–5). Despite these technical improvements, however, the value of MRCP imaging for evaluating small changes and anat- omy remains limited because of its lower spatial reso- lution and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Recently there has been considerable interest in the clinical evaluation of MRI using higher magnetic field strengths (6 – 8). Some investigators have demonstrated that spatial resolution and SNR can be improved signif- icantly with the use of high-field MRI scanners; how- ever, to the best of our knowledge, few studies have demonstrated the image quality and potential of ab- dominal imaging with MR scanners at 3.0T (9 –11). We hypothesized that MRCP imaging at 3.0T would provide improved SNR and thus allow the detailed structure of the biliary and pancreatic ducts to be visualized. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether there is any difference between 1.5T and 3.0T MRCP imaging in terms of image quality. MATERIALS AND METHODS Volunteers From April to August 2005, 14 normal adult volunteers participated in the study. The local institutional review board first approved the MRI examinations, and all volunteers gave their written informed consent for the study protocol. The group consisted of 13 men and one woman with an age range of 27–59 years (mean age 4= 2.4  8.6 years). MRI at 3.0T was performed 10 –20 minutes before or after MRI at 1.5T in all volunteers. Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan. *Address reprint requests to: H.I., Dept. of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, 54 Kawahara-cho, Shogoin, Sakyo, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan. E-mail: sayuki@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp Received January 5, 2006; Accepted November 21, 2006. DOI 10.1002/jmri.20892 Published online 4 April 2007 in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience. wiley.com). JOURNAL OF MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING 25:1000 –1006 (2007) © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. 1000