Processing of radial fast spin-echo data for obtaining T₂ estimates from a single k-space data set

Radially acquired fast spin-echo data can be processed to obtain T ₂-weighted images and a T2 map from a single k-space data set. The general approach is to use data at a specific TE (or narrow TE range) In the center of k-space and data at other TE values in the outer part of k-space. With this method high-resolution T₂-weighted images and T₂ maps are obtained in a time efficient manner. The mixing of TE data, however, introduces errors in the T₂-weighted images and T₂ maps that affect the accuracy of the T₂ estimates. In this work, various k-space data processing methods for reconstructing T₂-weighted images and T₂ maps from a single radial fast spin-echo k-space data set are analyzed in terms of the accuracy of T₂ estimates. The analysis is focused on the effect of image artifacts, object dependency, and noise on the T₂ estimates. Results are presented in computer-generated phantoms and in vivo.