Reliability of Three-Dimensional Pseudo-Continuous Arterial Spin Labeling MR Imaging for Measuring Visual Cortex Perfusion on Two 3T Scanners

Cerebral blood flow (CBF) in the human primary visual cortex is correlated with the loss of visual function in neuro-ophthalmological diseases. Advanced three-dimensional pseudo-continuous arterial spin labeling (3D pCASL), as a non-invasive method to access the CBF, can be a novel measurement to detect the visual cortex. The objective of the study was to assess the intra- and inter-scanner reliability of 3D pCASL of the visual cortex in healthy adults and suggest the selection of different post-labeling delay times (PLDs). For this reason, 3D pCASL was conducted in two 3.0T MR three times with twelve healthy volunteers at an interval of 10–15 days. The 1st and 3rd tests were performed on scanner-1, and the 2nd test was performed on scanner-2. The value of the CBF was abstracted from the visual cortex with two PLDs. The intra- and inter-scanner reliability and reproducibility were evaluated with the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Bland-Altman plots. By estimating the mean value of the CBF in the visual cortex, the intra-scanner results demonstrated the higher reliability (ICC for PLD = 1.5 second presented at 0.743 compared with 0.829 for PLD = 2.5 seconds), and the Bland-Altman plots showed the reproducibility at a longer PLD. We conclude that the calibrated 3D pCASL approach provides a highly reproducible measurement of the CBF of the visual cortex that can serve as a useful quantitative probe for research conducted at multiple centers and for the long-term observation of the clinical effects of neuro-opthalmological diseases.