From: The Dutch Parelsnoer Institute - Neurodegenerative diseases; methods, design and baseline results
1. | Sagittal 3D T1-weighted gradient-echo sequence (6–9 min). |
E.g. MP-RAGE, SPGR, FFE | |
Correction for non-linear gradients (if applicable) | |
TE and TR according to local settings- giving good gray matter – white matter contrast | |
Slab thickness 180Â mm, 180 partitions, 1.0Â mm effective slice thickness | |
In-plane resolution 1.0Â mm | |
2. | 2D T2* gradient-echo sequence (3–5 min) |
e.g. FLASH/FFE/SPGR, or (EPI-) SWI to obtain dark tissue background susceptible to T2* contrast –such as microbleedings. | |
TR ≥ 500 ms, TE ≥ 20 ms. Flip angle 20 degrees | |
Slice thickness 3Â mm, no gap | |
Number of slices 48 | |
In-plane resolution 0.5 – 1.0 mm | |
3. | 2D T2-weighted FLAIR turbo/fast spin-echo (3–5 min) |
TR 8,000 – 12,000 ms, TE 100–150 ms, TI 2,200 – 2,800 ms | |
Slice thickness 3Â mm, no gap | |
Number of slices 48 | |
In-plane resolution 0.5 – 1.0 mm | |
4. | 2D T2-weighted turbo/fast spin-echo (3–5 min) |
TR 2,000 - 4,000 ms, TE 80–120 ms | |
Slice thickness 3Â mm, no gap | |
Number of slices 48 | |
In-plane resolution 0.5 -1.0Â mm | |
5. | 2D Diffusion weighted imaging/EPI (30Â sec-1Â min) |
Parallel Imaging on if possible (mandatory for 3Â T) | |
TR 3,000-6,000 ms, TE 90–130 ms | |
Slice thickness < 5 mm, gap 10-30% | |
In plane resolution 2Â mm b value (0/500/1000) or b value (0/900) or b value (0/1000) s/mm2. | |
5b. Include online calculated ADC maps if possible. | |
6. | 2D Diffusion tensor imaging (optional) (6–8 min) |
 | Parallel Imaging on if possible (mandatory for 3 T) |
TR 8,000-14,000 ms, TE 80–100 ms | |
Number of slices 56–70 slices | |
In-plane resolution 2.0 – 2.5 mm. | |
30–60 diffusion weighted directions with b = 1000 s/mm2 , 5–6 scans with b = 0 s/mm2 | |
Fat suppression ON | |
7. | 2D Resting state fMRI (optional) (7–10 min) |
3.0 Tesla scanner: | |
TR 1,800-2,200 ms, TE 30–40 ms, Flip Angle 80 degrees | |
Slice thickness 2.0 – 2.5 mm, gap 10% | |
Number of slices 38–54 | |
In-plane resolution 2.0 – 2.3 mm | |
Number of volumes 200 (excluding run-in scans) | |
1.5 Tesla scanner: | |
TR 2,200-3,000 ms, TE 40–60 ms. Flip Angle 90 degrees | |
Slice thickness 2.5-3.0Â mm, gap 10% | |
Number of slices 30–38 | |
In-plane resolution 2.5 – 3.3 mm | |
Number of volumes 200 (excluding run-in scans) |