Brain perfusion measurements using multidelay arterial spin-labeling are systematically biased by the number of delays

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Multidelay arterial spin-labeling is a promising emerging method in clinical practice. The effect of imaging parameters in multidelay arterial spin-labeling on estimated cerebral blood flow measurements remains unknown. We directly compared 3-delay versus 7-delay sequences, assessing the difference in the estimated transit time and blood flow. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study included 87 cognitively healthy controls (78.7 3.8 years of age; 49 women). We assessed delay and transit time- uncorrected and transit time- corrected CBF maps. Data analysis included voxelwise permutation-based between-sequence comparisons of 3-delay versus 7-delay, within-sequence comparison of transit time- uncorrected versus transit time- corrected maps, and average CBF calculations in regions that have been shown to differ. RESULTS: The 7-delay sequence estimated a higher CBF value than the 3-delay for the transit time- uncorrected and transit time-corrected maps in regions corresponding to the watershed areas (transit time- uncorrected 27.62 12.23 versus 24.58 11.70 mL/min/ 100 g, Cohen's d 0.25; transit time- corrected 33.48 14.92 versus 30.16 14.32 mL/min/100 g, Cohen's d 0.23). In the peripheral regions of the brain, the estimated delay was found to be longer for the 3-delay sequence (1.52408 0.25236 seconds versus 1.47755 0.24242 seconds, Cohen's d 0.19), while the inverse was found in the center of the brain (1.39388 0.22056 seconds versus 1.42565 0.21872 seconds, Cohen's d 0.14). Moreover, 7-delay had lower hemispheric asymmetry. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study support the necessity of standardizing acquisition parameters in multidelay arterial spin-labeling and identifying basic parameters as a confounding factor in CBF quantification studies. Our findings conclude that multidelay arterial spin-labeling sequences with a high number of delays estimate higher CBF values than those with a lower number of delays.