Purpose
This study explores the possibility of using gradient echo‐based sequences other than balanced steady‐state free precession (bSSFP) in the magnetic resonance fingerprinting (MRF) framework to quantify the relaxation parameters .
Methods
An MRF method based on a fast imaging with steady‐state precession (FISP) sequence structure is presented. A dictionary containing possible signal evolutions with physiological range of T1 and T2 was created using the extended phase graph formalism according to the acquisition parameters. The proposed method was evaluated in a phantom and a human brain. T1, T2, and proton density were quantified directly from the undersampled data by the pattern recognition algorithm.
Results
T1 and T2 values from the phantom demonstrate that the results of MRF FISP are in good agreement with the traditional gold‐standard methods. T1 and T2 values in brain are within the range of previously reported values.
Conclusion
MRF‐FISP enables a fast and accurate quantification of the relaxation parameters. It is immune to the banding artifact of bSSFP due to B0 inhomogeneities, which could improve the ability to use MRF for applications beyond brain imaging. Magn Reson Med 74:1621–1631, 2015. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.