The Power & Pitfalls of Balanced Steady-State Free Precession Contrast
Weekend Course
ORGANIZERS: Mohammed Al-masni, Jessica Bastiaansen, Simon Robinson
Sunday, 11 May 2025
312
13:15 -
15:15
Moderators: Peter Lally
Skill Level: Basic to Advanced
Session Number: WE-28
No CME/CE Credit
Session Number: WE-28
Overview
To explain and demonstrate the contrast that can be obtained with balanced steady state free precession. Describe how this contrast is exploited in different applications, organs and magnetic field strengths. Describe the phenomenon of banding artifacts and how they can be avoided. Explain the different signal representations of phase-cycled bSSFP, and their application for quantitative imaging (e.g. Planet, Miracle). Describe and explain the quantitative imaging applications beyond relaxometry (Magnetization Transfer, Diffusion, EPT, metabolic imaging, AI integration).
Target Audience
Researchers interested in the principles and applications of bSSFP contrast and quantitative imaging with phase-cycled bSSFP.
Educational Objectives
As a result of attending this course, participants should be able to:
• Explain and demonstrate the principles and sensitivities of balanced steady-state free precession. Provide a comparison with gradient and spin echo;
• Describe the applications of bSSFP in different organs (cardiac, lung, brain) and at different magnetic field strengths low and high fields;
• Describe the concept of passband and stopband and their applications (such as passband fMRI). Explain the mechanism of banding artifacts and how they can be avoided, illustrating different different banding-artifact removal strategies;
• Explain different signal representations of phase-cycled bssp and how they can be used for multiparametric mapping with PC-bSSFP (T1, T2, PD, B0), and their applications; and
• Describe quantitative imaging using phase-cycled bSSFP beyond conventional T1 and T2 mapping (such as magnetization transfer, diffusion, EPT, the potential use of asymmetries).
| 13:15 | | The Principle of bSSFP Contrast: Don’t Spoil the Signal Kübra Keskin |
| 13:45 |  | Avoiding the Dark Side Michael Hoff Keywords: Image acquisition: Artefacts, Image acquisition: Reconstruction, Image acquisition: Image processing test |
| 14:15 | | Miraculous Ellipses: From Dark Bands to Insightful Maps Anne Slawig |
| 14:45 | | Quantitative Imaging with Phase-Cycled bSSFP: Beyond the Obvious Rui Pedro Azeredo Gomes Teixeira |