Feasibility of Liver MR Elastography at 0.55 T

Motivation: Mid and low field MRI systems provide opportunities for lower cost MRI and larger bore size. MR elastography (MRE) would be an attractive capability for such systems. Goal(s): Demonstrate the feasibility of MRE at 0.55T using both spin echo and gradient echo approaches. Approach: 15 patients with known or suspected chronic liver disease received MRE at 0.55T using both GRE and SE-EPI derived measurements. Stiffness and measured ROI size were compared between approaches. Results: High quality diagnostic MRE images were obtained in all patients, with good agreement in stiffness measured for GRE and SE approaches. Impact: High-quality MRE acquisitions have been shown to be possible at 0.55T. MRE at lower fields and larger bore size is feasible, which will help make this technology accessible to a larger range of patients who need it.