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To implement and characterize an isotropic three‐dimensional cardiac T₂ mapping technique.

A self‐navigated three‐dimensional radial segmented balanced steady‐state free precession pulse sequence with an isotropic 1.7‐mm spatial resolution was implemented at 3T with a variable T₂ preparation module. Bloch equation and Monte Carlo simulations were performed to determine the influence of the heart rate, B₁ inhomogeneity and noise on the T₂ fitting accuracy. In a phantom study, the accuracy of the pulse sequence was studied through comparison with a gold‐standard spin‐echo T₂ mapping method. The robustness and homogeneity of the technique were ascertained in a study of 10 healthy adult human volunteers, while first results obtained in patients are reported.

The numerical simulations demonstrated that the heart rate and B₁ inhomogeneity cause only minor …