MRI-based methodology to monitor the impact of positional changes on the airway caliber in obstructive sleep apnea patients
- Resource Type
- Authors
- Huyen T. Nguyen; Amir M. Abduljalil; Petra Schmalbrock; Saba Elias; David L. Ribble; Kirsten M. Emmons; Ulysses J. Magalang; Samantha Rojas; Michael V. Knopp; Preethi Chandrasekaran
- Source
- Magnetic resonance imaging. 61
- Subject
- Adult
Male
Biomedical Engineering
Biophysics
Imaging phantom
Patient Positioning
Body Mass Index
Young Adult
Imaging, Three-Dimensional
Image Processing, Computer-Assisted
Image acquisition
Medicine
Humans
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and imaging
Monitoring, Physiologic
Sleep Apnea, Obstructive
business.industry
Middle Aged
medicine.disease
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Healthy Volunteers
Obstructive sleep apnea
Caliber
Female
business
Airway
Nuclear medicine
- Language
- ISSN
- 1873-5894
Purpose To develop a non-invasive MRI-based methodology to visually and quantitatively assess the impact of head and chest rotations on the airway caliber. Methods An MRI table set-up was developed for independent rotations of the head and chest along B0 field and tested for feasibility using phantom scans. The accuracy of the head and chest rotations was validated with ten volunteer scans. A 3T MRI protocol was optimized to image the regions of interest (ROIs) that were the retropalatal (RP) and retroglossal (RG) sections of the upper airway. A workflow for data analysis was developed to assess the changes of the airway caliber following the independent head and chest rotations. Results A prototype MRI table setup was established with two separate plates each supporting and rotating the head or chest independently. Subject positioning and image acquisition were finished within seven minutes for each position. Thus, each subject MRI was set up with seven positions and completed for less than one hour. The implemented angles were within 0.3-degree deviation from the targeted angles. The data analysis workflow provided 2D and 3D visualization and quantification with the measurements of cross-sectional area, lateral and anterior-posterior distances of the ROIs. Sharp contrast of the airway and its surrounding tissues facilitated an automatic approach to ROI placement to minimize subjectivity. Conclusions The 3T MRI data acquisition and analysis methodology could reliably assess the impact of head and chest rotations on the upper airway caliber to identify the optimal position for obstructive sleep apnea patients.