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Background <p>Double inversion recovery (DIR) MRI provides high sensitivity for detecting white matter abnormalities but suffers from reduced signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) due to simultaneous suppression of multiple tissue signals. Head-coil configuration and channel count may influence the resulting image quality.</p> Methods <p>Seventeen healthy subjects underwent DIR imaging on a 3-T MRI system using both 64-channel and 20-channel head/neck coils. Quantitative image quality was assessed using SNR and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) measurements across multiple brain regions, with comparisons performed using paired t-tests. Structural Similarity Index Measure (SSIM) was additionally computed between registered 64-channel and 20-channel DIR images to quantify inter-coil structural image similarity. Qualitative image quality was evaluated by three experienced neuroradiologists using a 5-point rating scale for contrast, spatial resolution, and noise; inter-rater agreement was assessed using Kendall’s coefficient of concordance (Kendall’s W).</p> Results <p>Quantitative analysis demonstrated significantly higher SNR and CNR values for the 64-channel coil compared with the 20-channel coil across all assessed regions (<i>p</i> &lt; 0.0001). Qualitative evaluation showed that images acquired with the 64-channel coil received marginally higher mean scores for contrast, spatial resolution, and noise from all raters; inter-rater agreement was moderate-to-strong across all domains (Kendall’s W = 0.33–0.89).</p> Conclusion <p>At 3 T, the use of a 64-channel head/neck coil provides significant quantitative improvements in DIR image quality compared with a 20-channel coil, with small but consistent advantages also observed in qualitative assessments. These findings support the use of higher-channel-count coils to mitigate SNR limitations inherent to DIR imaging. However, qualitative differences between coil configurations were modest and inter-rater agreement was moderate-to-strong by Kendall’s W (W = 0.33–0.89). The clinical benefit of the 64-channel coil in pathological conditions such as multiple sclerosis or cortical dysplasia requires further investigation in patient-based studies.</p>

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The effect of head coil configuration and channel count on the quality of double inversion recovery (DIR) MRI images

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

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  • 发表日期：

    2026年5月5日

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  • Adnan Alahmadi,
  • Razan A. Alshehri,
  • Rana A. Gasem,
  • Abdullah Aljuhani,
  • Almotazbillah Bedaiwi,
  • Afnan A. Malaih,
  • Jamaan Alghamdi,
  • Amal Alsalamah,
  • Shyma M. Alkhateeb,
  • Ghouth Waggass,
  • Mohammad Khalil,
  • Mustafa S. Alhasan,
  • Khalid M. Alshamrani,
  • Ali M. Hendi,
  • Njoud Aldusary,
  • Walaa Alsharif,
  • Norah Y. Hakami,
  • Ibrahem Hussain Kanbayti

摘要

Background

Double inversion recovery (DIR) MRI provides high sensitivity for detecting white matter abnormalities but suffers from reduced signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) due to simultaneous suppression of multiple tissue signals. Head-coil configuration and channel count may influence the resulting image quality.

Methods

Seventeen healthy subjects underwent DIR imaging on a 3-T MRI system using both 64-channel and 20-channel head/neck coils. Quantitative image quality was assessed using SNR and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) measurements across multiple brain regions, with comparisons performed using paired t-tests. Structural Similarity Index Measure (SSIM) was additionally computed between registered 64-channel and 20-channel DIR images to quantify inter-coil structural image similarity. Qualitative image quality was evaluated by three experienced neuroradiologists using a 5-point rating scale for contrast, spatial resolution, and noise; inter-rater agreement was assessed using Kendall’s coefficient of concordance (Kendall’s W).

Results

Quantitative analysis demonstrated significantly higher SNR and CNR values for the 64-channel coil compared with the 20-channel coil across all assessed regions (p < 0.0001). Qualitative evaluation showed that images acquired with the 64-channel coil received marginally higher mean scores for contrast, spatial resolution, and noise from all raters; inter-rater agreement was moderate-to-strong across all domains (Kendall’s W = 0.33–0.89).

Conclusion

At 3 T, the use of a 64-channel head/neck coil provides significant quantitative improvements in DIR image quality compared with a 20-channel coil, with small but consistent advantages also observed in qualitative assessments. These findings support the use of higher-channel-count coils to mitigate SNR limitations inherent to DIR imaging. However, qualitative differences between coil configurations were modest and inter-rater agreement was moderate-to-strong by Kendall’s W (W = 0.33–0.89). The clinical benefit of the 64-channel coil in pathological conditions such as multiple sclerosis or cortical dysplasia requires further investigation in patient-based studies.