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Pituitary (Sella Turcica) MRI Protocols and Planning

Common Indications for MRI of the Pituitary

Contraindications

Please check our new video tutorial for protocols and planning

Patient preparation for pituitary mri

Positioning for Pituitary MRI

mri brain planning and positioning

Recommended MRI Pituitary Protocols, Parameters, and Planning

Pituitary MRI localiser

A three-plane localizer must be taken at the beginning to localize and plan the sequences. Localizers are usually less than 25 seconds and are T1-weighted low-resolution scans.

Pituitary MRI localiser image

T2 tse axial 4mm

Plan the axial slices on the sagittal plane and position the block parallel to the genu and splenium of the corpus callosum. Verify the planning block in the other two planes and ensure that an appropriate angle is maintained in the coronal plane, making it perpendicular to the line of the midline of the brain and the 4th ventricle. Ensure that the number of slices is sufficient to cover the entire brain from the vertex to the line of the foramen magnum.

mri brain protocol and planning of axial scans

Parameters

TR

4000-5000

TE

100-120

SLICE

4MM

FLIP

130-150

PHASE

R>L

MATRIX

320X320

FOV

210-230

GAP

10%

NEX(AVRAGE)

2

T1 tse DIXON 2mm sagittal SFOV

Plan the sagittal slices on the axial plane, and angle the planning block parallel to the midline of the brain. Verify the planning block in the other two planes. Ensure an appropriate angle is given in the coronal plane, parallel to the midline of the brain. Slices should be sufficient to cover the entire pituitary gland from the right to left internal carotid arteries.

pituitary fossa mri sagittal planing

Parameters

TR

400-500

TE

15

FAT SAT

DIXON

NEX

4

SLICE

2MM

MATRIX

256×256

FOV

100-120

PHASE

A>P

OVERSAMPLE

100%

GAP

10%

T2 tse coronal 2mm

Plan the coronal slices on the sagittal plane. Angle the planning block perpendicular to the Sella turcica. Check the planning block in the other two planes. An appropriate angle must be given in the axial plane (perpendicular to the midline of the brain). Slices must be sufficient to cover the whole pituitary gland from the anterior border of the sphenoid sinus to the line of the anterior border of the pons.

pituitary fossa mri coronal planing

Parameters

TR

4000-5000

TE

110

FLIP

150

NEX

4

SLICE

2MM

MATRIX

256×256

FOV

100-120

PHASE

R>L

OVERSAMPLE

100%

GAP

10%

T1 tse DIXON 2mm coronal

Plan the coronal slices on the sagittal plane. Angle the planning block perpendicular to the Sella turcica. Check the planning block in the other two planes. An appropriate angle must be given in the axial plane (perpendicular to the midline of the brain). Slices must be sufficient to cover the whole pituitary gland from the anterior border of the sphenoid sinus to the line of the anterior border of the pons.

pituitary fossa mri sagittal planing

Parameters

TR

400-500

TE

15

FAT SAT

DIXON

NEX

4

SLICE

2MM

MATRIX

256×256

FOV

100-120

PHASE

A>P

OVERSAMPLE

100%

GAP

10%

For post-contrast pituitary imaging, use T1 TSE DIXON coronal and sagittal sequences after the administration of IV gadolinium DTPA injection (copy the planning outlined above). The document below provides access to the recommended dosage of gadolinium DTPA injection, as advised by the manufacturer.