Improved depiction of hemodynamics in intracranial aneurysms by 4D flow MRI at 7T compared to 3T

Background Intracranial aneurysms are life threatening conditions and occur in 3-6% of the population. The annual rupture rate is approximately 2% associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Hemodynamic information obtained by 4D flow MRI may contribute to the assessment of rupture risk of intracranial aneurysms. However, the small sizes of intracranial aneurysms require high spatial resolution to accurately capture complex intra-aneurysmal flow. Increasing spatial resolution, however, decreases signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and thus velocity-to-noise ratio in flow images. Performing 4D flow at 7T has high potential to overcome low SNR limits and enable higher spatial resolution in 4D flow acquisitions. In this study 4D flow in intracranial aneurysms at 7T was compared with 4D flow at 3T.