Multiparametric Functional MRI of the Kidney: Current State and Future Trends with Deep Learning Approaches.
Journal:
RoFo : Fortschritte auf dem Gebiete der Rontgenstrahlen und der Nuklearmedizin
Published Date:
Mar 10, 2022
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Until today, assessment of renal function has remained a challenge for modern medicine. In many cases, kidney diseases accompanied by a decrease in renal function remain undetected and unsolved, since neither laboratory tests nor imaging diagnostics provide adequate information on kidney status. In recent years, developments in the field of functional magnetic resonance imaging with application to abdominal organs have opened new possibilities combining anatomic imaging with multiparametric functional information. The multiparametric approach enables the measurement of perfusion, diffusion, oxygenation, and tissue characterization in one examination, thus providing more comprehensive insight into pathophysiological processes of diseases as well as effects of therapeutic interventions. However, application of multiparametric fMRI in the kidneys is still restricted mainly to research areas and transfer to the clinical routine is still outstanding. One of the major challenges is the lack of a standardized protocol for acquisition and postprocessing including efficient strategies for data analysis. This article provides an overview of the most common fMRI techniques with application to the kidney together with new approaches regarding data analysis with deep learning.