High-resolution modified look-locker inversion recovery (HR-MOLLI) for RV extracellular volume fraction at 3T and 1.5T: A feasibility study

Background Cardiac MR (CMR) is the reference standard for assessing macroscopic myocardial scar. Determination of the extracellular volume fraction (ECV) by T1 estimation using the modified Look-Locker inversion recovery (MOLLI) correction enables quantitation of diffuse fibrosis. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the feasibility and reproducibility of an optimized high-resolution MOLLI (HR-MOLLI) technique at 3T and 1.5T for RV ECV calculation in healthy volunteers. Methods 25 healthy volunteers (16 males, 41 ± 14.3 yrs) were scanned at 3T (MAGNETOM Skyra, Siemens AG, Healthcare Sector, Erlangen, Germany) and 15 (11 males, 46.4 ± 13.5 yrs) were scanned at 1.5T (MAGNETOM Aera). T1 mapping was performed in the axial orientation using an investigational HR-MOLLI technique with a 1 × 1 mm 2 in-plane resolution that applies motion correction with synthetic image estimation. Motion corrected images were used to generate parametric maps