Cardiac T1 and T2 Mapping: The Importance of Rest Periods in Quantitative Tissue Property Mapping

The aim of this study is to assess whether the presence of rest periods in the form of breathhold commands affects T1 and T2 values measured in the myocardium using both clinically standard pulse sequences and cardiac Magnetic Resonance Fingerprinting (MRF). When mapping data are collected immediately following cine acquisitions, T1 maps from both MOLLI and MRF show significant errors, although T2 maps from both T2-prepared bSSFP and MRF are unaffected by the absence of a pause between sequences.