Phase measurement in in vivo magnetic resonance-a route to functional insight

Mapping the phase differences between magnetic resonance images has been shown to be useful for the measurement of flow in blood vessels. More recently the same methods have been applied to detecting susceptibility variations due to blood degradation products, and, with enhanced sensitization, to detecting perfused flow. In conjunction with parallel reconstruction of magnitude images, it seems likely that useful data will be obtained about tissue function, particularly when supported in parallel in some patients by spectroscopic studies. The measurement of perfused flow has revealed data in clinical studies not shown by any other modality.<>