Test-retest reliability of FreeSurfer-derived volume, area and cortical thickness from MPRAGE and MP2RAGE brain MRI images

Graham N. Knussmann; Jeffrey S. Anderson; Molly B.D. Prigge; Douglas C. Dean, III; Nicholas Lange; Erin D. Bigler; Andrew L. Alexander; Janet E. Lainhart; Brandon A. Zielinski; Jace B. King

Neuroimage: Reports (Jun 2022)

Test-retest reliability of FreeSurfer-derived volume, area and cortical thickness from MPRAGE and MP2RAGE brain MRI images

Graham N. Knussmann,
Jeffrey S. Anderson,
Molly B.D. Prigge,
Douglas C. Dean, III,
Nicholas Lange,
Erin D. Bigler,
Andrew L. Alexander,
Janet E. Lainhart,
Brandon A. Zielinski,
Jace B. King

Affiliations

Graham N. Knussmann: Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
Jeffrey S. Anderson: Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
Molly B.D. Prigge: Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
Douglas C. Dean, III: Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA; Department of Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
Nicholas Lange: Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
Erin D. Bigler: Department of Psychology and Neuroscience Center, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, USA; Department of Neurology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Department of Psychiatry, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Department of Neurology, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA, USA
Andrew L. Alexander: Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA; Department of Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA; Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
Janet E. Lainhart: Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA; Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
Brandon A. Zielinski: Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Department of Neurology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
Jace B. King: Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Corresponding author. University of Utah, 729 Arapeen Drive, Salt Lake City, UT, 84108, USA.

Journal volume & issue: Vol. 2, no. 2
p. 100086

Abstract

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Background and purpose: Large MRI studies often pool data gathered from widely varying imaging sequences. Pooled data creates a potential source of variation in structural analyses which may cause misinterpretation of findings. The purpose of this study is to determine if data acquired using different scan sequences, head coils and scanners offers consistent structural measurements. Materials and methods: Participants (163 right-handed males: 82 typically developing controls, 81 participants with autism spectrum disorder) were scanned on the same day using an MPRAGE sequence with a 12-channel headcoil on a Siemens 3T Trio scanner and an MP2RAGE sequence with a 64-channel headcoil on a Siemens 3T Prisma scanner. Segmentation was performed using FreeSurfer to identify regions exhibiting variation between sequences on measures of volume, surface area, and cortical thickness. Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and mean percent difference (MPD) were used as test-retest reproducibility measures. Results: ICC for total brain segmented volume yielded a 0.99 intraclass correlation, demonstrating high overall volumetric reproducibility. Comparison of individual regions of interest resulted in greater variation. Volumetric variability, although low overall, was greatest in the entorhinal cortex (ICC = 0.71), frontal (ICC = 0.60) and temporal (ICC = 0.60) poles. Surface area variability was greatest in the insula (ICC = 0.65), temporal (ICC = 0.64) and frontal (ICC = 0.68) poles. Cortical thickness was most variable in the frontal (ICC = 0.41) and temporal (ICC = 0.35) poles. Conclusion: Data collected on different scanners and head coils using MPRAGE and MP2RAGE are generally consistent for surface area and volume estimates. However, regional variability may constrain accuracy in some regions and cortical thickness measurements exhibit higher generalized variability.

Published in Neuroimage: Reports

ISSN: 2666-9560 (Online)
Publisher: Elsevier
Country of publisher: United States
LCC subjects: Medicine: Internal medicine: Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry
Website: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/neuroimage-reports

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