Quantification of background suppressed arterial spin labeling images without an M0 image

Arterial spin labeling (ASL) is a non-invasive perfusion MRI scan technique used in pathologies such as Alzheimer’’s
disease, cerebrovascular disease, and brain tumors [3]. To obtain
absolute quantification of cerebral blood flow (CBF) in mL/100 g/
min, the blood equilibrium magnetization (M0b) is required [1]. For
that, M0-scan acquisition is recommended [1]; however, in practice,
clinical studies often lack an M0-scan. A control image can be used as
an alternative only when background suppression (BSup) is not used.
Here, we investigate the possibility to reconstruct an M0 scan from a
control image with BS and compare it with acquired M0 scans from
the same patients.