Free-Breathing Lung MR Fingerprinting at 0.55T with Retrospective Respiratory Motion Binning

Motivation: Quantitative mapping may enable early detection/monitoring of pulmonary diseases, with free-breathing imaging essential for patients with compromised lung capacity. Goal(s): This work aims to develop free-breathing 2D lung MR Fingerprinting T1, T2, and M0 mapping at 0.55T with respiratory self-navigation. Approach: Data were acquired in three healthy subjects using a 30-second free-breathing MRF sequence at 0.55T with respiratory self-navigation Respiratory motion-resolved maps were obtained using a Deep Image Prior reconstruction. Results: Free-breathing 0.55T lung MRF was successful in all subjects, yielding average values of 645±123ms (inspiration) and 638±129ms (expiration) for T1, and 42±2ms (inspiration), and 44±2ms (expiration) for T2. Impact: This work demonstrates feasibility of free-breathing lung MR Fingerprinting for respiratory motion-resolved 2D T1, T2 and M0 mapping at 0.55T in healthy subjects, which may have potential clinical applications to pulmonary conditions, such as emphysema, COPD, and interstitial lung diseases.