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Principles and applications of balanced SSFP techniques

  • Magnetic Resonance
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Abstract

During the past 5 years balanced steady-state free precession (SSFP) has become increasingly important for diagnostic and functional imaging. Balanced SSFP is characterized by two unique features: it offers a very high signal-to noise ratio and a T2/T1-weighted image contrast. This article focuses on the physical principles, on the signal formation, and on the resulting properties of balanced SSFP. Mechanisms for contrast modification, recent clinical application, and potential extensions of this technique are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Radiology, MR-Physics, University Hospital, Petersgraben 4, 4031, Basel, Switzerland

    Klaus Scheffler

  2. Department of Diagnostic Radiology, University Hospital of Freiburg, Hugstetterstrasse 55, 79106, Freiburg, Germany

    Stefan Lehnhardt

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  1. Klaus Scheffler
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  2. Stefan Lehnhardt
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Correspondence to Klaus Scheffler.

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Scheffler, K., Lehnhardt, S. Principles and applications of balanced SSFP techniques. Eur Radiol 13, 2409–2418 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00330-003-1957-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00330-003-1957-x

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