Display of the Swallowtail Sign at 7T: SWI is not the wisest choice

Motivation: At 7T, due to increased sensitivity to flow and pulsation artifacts, the display of the Swallowtail Sign by SWI is not sufficiently excellent and shows significant individual variations. Goal(s): Identify sequences that can clearly display the Swallowtail Sign in 7T MRI. Approach: Experienced radiologists evaluate whether the Swallowtail Sign displayed by SWI, 3D T2WI SPACE, 3D fluid attenuation inversion recovery (FLAIR) SPACE, and Dual Echo Steady-State (DESS) is clear, and provide a 5-scale score. Results: DESS (echo2) and FLAIR_SPACE provide a clearer display of the Swallowtail Sign compared to SWI. Impact: Compared to the commonly used SWI sequence (at 1.5T and 3T) for observing the Swallowtail Sign, DESS (echo2) and FLAIR_SPACE can display the Swallowtail Sign more clearly at 7T.