Local staging of rectal carcinoma and assessment of the circumferential resection margin with high-resolution MRI using an integrated parallel acquisition technique

Purpose To assess the diagnostic accuracy of integrated parallel acquisition technique (iPAT) in local staging of rectal carcinoma in comparison to conventional high-resolution MRI. Materials and Methods A total of 28 patients with a neoplasm of the rectum and 15 control patients underwent MRI of the pelvis. High-resolution images were acquired conventionally and with iPAT using a modified sensitivity encoding (mSENSE). Image quality, signal-to-noise and contrast-to-noise ratios (SNR, CNR), tumor extent, nodal status, and delineation of the circumferential resection margin (CRM) were compared. In 19 patients with a carcinoma, MR findings were correlated with the histopathological diagnosis.…