The clinical benefit of high-resolution 3D proton density at 3T in the discrimination between intracranial aneurysm and normal variants

At 3T, a three-dimensional proton density (3D PD) weighted sequence plays a supplementary role to the time-of-flight MR angiography (TOF MRA) to improve diagnosis and significantly decreases indeterminate findings for aneurysm. This leads to better patient care and a measurable decrease in the likelihood for the patient to undergo surveillance or more invasive tests that use ionising radiation and intravenous contrast media like Computed Tomography Angiography (CTA) and Digital Subtraction Angiography (DSA). The anxiety and stress that patients experience due to inconclusive findings and ongoing surveillance has been significantly alleviated since the inclusion of the 3D PD to the protocol.