Non-uniformity of signal artifact

The RF receiver detects signals closest to it most efficiently. This characteristic may cause a non-uniformity of signal in the image. The effect is more pronounced with surface coils than with volume coils, appearing as localized bright areas close to the coil. Signal variability may also result in incomplete fat suppression when chemical fat suppression techniques are used.

Troubleshooting tips:

• Try a different coil.
• Use a STIR sequence rather than trying additional fat saturation techniques.
• Coil intensity correction techniques can also be applied to correct the non-uniformities in signal. PURE and SCENIC are two techniques designed to minimize surface coil intensity variations and can be used with compatible surface coils. For details, see Intensity Filter and Intensity Correction.