Low-Field (0.55T) Phase-resolved Functional Lung (PREFUL) MRI for Evaluating Ventilation and Perfusion in Pulmonary Diseases

Motivation: Functional lung imaging using non-contrast-enhanced, free-breathing MRI has gained popularity, especially with the rise of low-field MRI (0.55T) for improved lung parenchyma assessment. Goal(s): To evaluate the use of low-field PREFUL MRI for generating ventilation and perfusion maps in patients with lung disease. Approach: Multi-slice, free-breathing MRI was conducted in both patients and healthy volunteers, with PREFUL software used for lung segmentation and defect quantification. Results: Patients with lung disease exhibited visible and significantly higher ventilation and perfusion defects than healthy controls, supporting low-field PREFUL's potential for non-invasive lung function assessment. Impact: Low-field PREFUL MRI enables non-invasive, high-quality lung imaging, detecting pronounced ventilation and perfusion defects in patients with lung disease. This advancement underscores low-field MRI's unique potential for accessible, non-contrast enhanced, high-quality pulmonary function assessment across diverse conditions.