Use of an Automated Approach for Generating vADC for a Large Patient Population Studied with 129Xe MRI

Hyperpolarized 129Xe lung MRI is an efficient technique used to investigate and assess pulmonary diseases. However, the longitudinal observation of the emphysema progression using hyperpolarized gas MRI-based ADC can be problematic, as the disease-progression can lead to increasing unventilated-lung areas, which likely excludes the largest ADC estimates. One solution to this problem is to combine static-ventilation and ADC measurements following the idea of 3He MRI ventilatory ADC (vADC). We have demonstrated this method adapted for 129Xe MRI to help overcome the above-mentioned shortcomings and provide an accurate assessment of the emphysema progression.