The Application of Customized Rice Bags in 3-T Magnetic Resonance Imaging Neck Scanning with Fat Suppression Pulse Sequences

Purpose: To investigate the value of using customized rice bags in the 3-T MRI neck scanning with frequency-selective fat suppression (FS) pulse sequences. Methods and Materials: Fifty healthy volunteers were scanned with the FS Turbo Spin Echo (TSE) T1- and T2-weighted sequences using the same parameter settings, one group with customized rice bags placed on the neck and upper chest and one group without. The resultant images were compared using a four-level observer-grading system (Levels 0–3 for fat suppression effect from the best to the worst) for subjective evaluation as well as via quantitative measurements of signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) in different regions of interest for objective evaluation. Statistical significance for the comparison between the conventional (no rice bag) and the rice-bag group or between the observers was determined using the Mann-Whitney test and the Wilcoxon test, or the Kappa test. Results: Using the four-level observer-grading system, for the FS TSE T1W images, the 50 cases were classified as follow for scans in the conventional group versus the rice-bag group: 2 cases versus 47 cases (Level 0), 8 versus 3 (Level 1), 13 versus 0 (Level 2), and 27 versus 0 (Level 3), with P < 0.05 for all levels. For the FS TSE T2W images, the 50 cases were classified as follow: 0 cases versus 46 cases (Level 0), 2 versus 4 (Level 1), 16 versus 0 (Level 2), and 32 versus 0 (Level 3), with P < 0.05 for all levels. For the quantitative comparison, the SNRs for the conventional group versus for the rice-bag group in the angle of the mandible, cricoid cartilage, and sternocleidomastoid muscle were 26.51 versus 123.52, 8.92 versus 35.42, and 17.92 versus 111.24 for the FS TSE T1W images, respectively; and 7.27 versus 22.64, 3.17 versus 22.20, and 6.27 versus 19.05 for the FS TSE T2W images, respectively. Conclusion: In 3-T MRI neck FS scans, the use of customized rice bags can significantly improve the imaging quality. It is simple to implement and hence broadly applicable.