WEEKEND EDUCATIONAL COURSE
Diffusion, Perfusion & the Corresponding Physiology
ORGANIZERS: Karla L. Miller, Ph.D., Carlo Pierpaoli, M.D., Ph.D. & Matthias J. P. van Osch, Ph.D.
 
SKILL LEVEL: Basic to Intermediate
Saturday, 7 May 2011
OVERVIEW
This one-day, intermediate-level course is designed for scientists and clinicians who are interested in a relatively non-technical, yet scientifically rigorous, overview of diffusion and perfusion MRI. The course will be taught in two parts, covering image acquisition, experimental design and data analysis of these techniques. The morning will cover the fundamentals of diffusion imaging, and progress on to more advanced topics in modeling and biological interpretation of diffusion in cerebral white matter. The afternoon will be dedicated to perfusion MRI, covering both dynamic susceptibility contrast MRI and arterial spin labeling. Besides describing the basics of these techniques, an overview will be given of the physiology of the cerebral microvasculature, including the local and systemic regulation of cerebral blood flow.
 
EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this course participants should be able to:
« Decide if diffusion and perfusion acquisitions would be useful in addressing their scientific and clinical questions;
 « Optimize experimental protocols for diffusion and perfusion MRI given the time limit of their scanning session;
 « Describe the steps involved in the processing pipelines for diffusion and perfusion MRI data;
 « Appraise potential pitfalls of diffusion and perfusion MRI’s;
 « Formulate biological interpretation of diffusion and perfusion MRI findings; and
 « Recognize potential future clinical applications of these techniques as technology improves.
Click on to view the abstract pdf and click on to view the video presentation.
     
  Diffusion Imaging Techniques  
08:00 Measuring Diffusion with NMR, MRI & Other Methods   Peter J. Basser, Ph.D.
08:30 Diffusion-Weighted Sequences   Stefan T. Skare, Ph.D.
09:00 Diffusion Tensor Quantities & their Biological Interpretation   Derek K. Jones, Ph.D.
09:30 Experimental Design, Artifacts & Confounds   Alexander L. G. Leemans, Ph.D.
10:00 Break  
  10:00 - 10:15 Meet the Teachers  
     
10:30 Tractography Methods   Saâd Jbabdi, Ph.D.
11:00 Non-Gaussian Diffusion & its Biological Interpretation   Yaniv Assaf, Ph.D.
11:30 Group Analysis & Atlases   Gary Hui Zhang, Ph.D.
12:00 Break  
  12:00 - 12:15 Meet the Teachers  
     
  Perfusion Imaging Acquisition & Flow Regulation  
13:30 Physiology of Microvasculature   Edith Hamel, Ph.D.
13:55 Introduction & From Signal to Concentration   Peter Gall, Ph.D.
14:20 Arterial Input Function: Measurement, Delay & Dispersion   Fernando Calamante, Ph.D.
14:45 Deconvolution & Predictive Modeling   Søren Christensen, Ph.D.
15:10 Vessel-Size & Permeability Imaging   Emmanuel L. Barbier, Ph.D.
15:35 Break  
  15:35 - 15:50 Meet the Teachers  
     
16:00 Physiology of Autoregulation   Linda Knutsson, Ph.D.
16:25 Introduction & Labeling Methods   Susan T. Francis, Ph.D.
16:50 Quantification of ASL   Esben T. Petersen, Ph.D.
17:15 Background Suppression & Read-Out Options   Matthias Günther, Ph.D.
17:40 Advanced ASL: Flow Territory Mapping, Reactivity & Pharmacological ASL   Jeroen Hendrikse, M.D., Ph.D.
18:00 Adjournment  
  18:00-18:15 Meet the Teachers