Processing and application of arterial spin labeling magnetic resonance imaging

Abstract

This thesis focuses on the image processing methods for brain perfusion measurement using a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) sequence called arterial spin labeling (ASL). We show the importance of dealing with brain volume changes as a measurement confounder, we propose a framework for integrating all processing steps in a robust processing pipeline, and lastly, we show an application of the ASL acquisition and processing to adverse effect measurements in healthy brain tissue of patients undergoing brain radio-chemotherapy demonstrating the usefulness of the method in uncovering structural and physiological changes in the brain.