Point spread function(PSF) encoding EPI versus BLADE DWI in brain tumor diagnosis

Motivation: High-resolution DWI plays a crucial role in brain tumor diagnosis. Previous studies have introduced two high-resolution distortion-free DWI techniques: PSF and BLADE. However, no one has yet compared the two in brain MR imaging. Goal(s): To compare the image quality of PSF and BLADE in high-resolution DWI. Approach: In this study, scan parameters were adjusted to achieve the optimized image quality for PSF and BLADE. Subsequently, scans were performed on patients, and the final image quality was compared. Results: With scanning times being similar, PSF exhibits a superior SNR compared to BLADE while its performance is suboptimal at the boundaries of brain tissues. Impact: A preliminary comparison of the image quality between PSF and BLADE has been conducted, paving the way for more in-depth clinical research in areas such as diagnostic accuracy and imaging quality control.