Dual-phase systolic and diastolic cardiac diffusion tensor imaging using higher order motion compensation spin echo sequences at 300 mT/m gradient strength

Afzali, Maryam, Teh, Irvin, Coveney, Sam, Mueller, Lars, Watson, Isaac, Lwin, May, Jones, Sarah, Fasano, Fabrizio, Evans, C. John, Szczepankiewicz, Filip, Jones, Derek K. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4409-8049, Dall’Armellina, Erica and Schneider, Jürgen E. 2026. Dual-phase systolic and diastolic cardiac diffusion tensor imaging using higher order motion compensation spin echo sequences at 300 mT/m gradient strength. Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance , 102805. 10.1016/j.jocmr.2026.102805

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Abstract

Background Cardiac diffusion tensor imaging (cDTI) provides unique insights into myocardial microstructure and its dynamic changes during the cardiac cycle. However, motion sensitivity remains a major obstacle for spin echo (SE)-based approaches, restricting most implementations to a relatively narrow low-motion window near peak systole. Purpose To establish whether higher-order motion-compensated (up to 6th order) diffusion gradients beyond standard second order motion compensation (M2) on a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system with a maximum gradient strength of 300 mT/m improve SE-based cDTI techniques for both systolic and diastolic acquisitions. Methods Ten healthy volunteers underwent free-breathing, cardiac-gated SE-cDTI acquisitions in systole and in diastole using diffusion gradients with up to second- (M2), fourth- (M4), and sixth-order (M6) motion compensation. Success rate (percentage of left ventricular voxels with (1.1 < MD < 1.9)  × 10−3mm2∕s) and diffusion measures including mean diffusivity, fractional anisotropy, helix angle, and secondary eigenvector angle were quantified and compared between both cardiac phases. Results Second-order motion compensation was sufficient for systolic cDTI, whereas fourth-order motion compensation was required for successful diastolic acquisitions in all participants. Mean diffusivity values in systole were (1.53 ± 0.06), (1.60 ± 0.07),   and   (1.62 ± 0.06)  × 10−3mm2∕s for M2, M4,   and   M6 respectively, and in diastole were (2.26 ± 0.67), (1.73 ± 0.19),   and   (1.71 ± 0.12) × 10−3mm2∕s. No significant differences in cDTI-derived parameters were observed between M4 and M6 for systolic and diastolic acquisitions. Conclusion This study demonstrates the feasibility of dual-phase SE-based cDTI techniques enabled by 300 mT/m gradients. This method will allow reliable quantification of myocardial microstructural changes between systole and diastole and represents a step towards clinical translation of dynamic cDTI.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Published Online
Status:	In Press
Schools:	Schools > Psychology Research Institutes & Centres > Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC)
Publisher:	Elsevier
ISSN:	1097-6647
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	5 October 2026
Date of Acceptance:	23 September 2026
Last Modified:	05 Oct 2026 10:00
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/189975

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