Accuracy and test-retest repeatability of stiffness measurement with MR Elastography: a multi-center phantom study

The purpose of our multicenter study was to determine the accuracy and test-retest repeatability of stiffness measured with MRE in phantoms. Three phantoms with known stiffness (2.4, 4.4, and 7.5 kPa) were circulated between 5 different centers. 1.5T or 3T systems from the 3 major vendors were used for scanning with 2D GRE and/or SE-EPI MRE sequences. The reference was based on measurements in the reference center made at the start and end of study. For all 3 phantoms the mean accuracy error for the 4 testing centers was 10.2%, while test-retest repeatability error was 2.9% for all centers.