A 20-channel coil for improved magnetic resonance imaging of the optic nerve

The purpose of this thesis is to design and construct a radio‐frequency coil for imaging the optic nerve on a 3 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging scanner. The goal of the work is to increase signal‐to‐noise ratio from the orbits to the optic chiasm, compared to the current coil designs used for imaging the optic nerve. The coil utilizes a mask fiberglass former, with the coils designed to obtain the most signal‐to‐noise ratio at the optic nerve. The design uses a 20‐channel radio‐frequency coil array, with coil placement along the optic nerve. The signal‐to‐noise ratio achieved was compared to the clinically available 12‐channel head coil. The improved signal‐to‐noise ratio allowed for higher resolution, diffusion tensor imaging, and parallel imaging superior to the current standard. Patient images showed that the plaques evidenced in the images correspond well to patient histories of bilateral and unilateral disease of the optic nerves. This optic nerve coil has shown improved patient care after increasing the diagnostic power of the magnetic resonance imaging scanner. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Concepts Magn Reson Part B (Magn Reson Engineering) 39B: 26–36, 2011