Comparison of three arm-positioning techniques for minimizing motion artifacts in breast magnetic resonance imaging: a prospective volunteer study.

Abstract

Background: Breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) assesses signal intensity changes across sequential image series (kinetic curves). Motion artifacts are common and often degrade image quality. However, the optimal patient positioning to minimize motion during breast MRI remains unclear. This study aimed to identify the most effective arm-positioning method for reducing motion artifacts during breast MRI.

Methods: Six female volunteers underwent MRI at seven time points using enhanced T₁ high-resolution isotropic volume excitation, a three-dimensional T₁-weighted gradient-echo sequence with fat suppression. Each phase lasted 60 s and comprised seven serial images. Three arm-positions were tested: both-arms-raised, right-arm-raised, and both-arms-down. Motion was assessed using the visual evaluation score (VES) and the distance discordance metric (DDM).

Results: VES results were higher with both-arms-raised (2.52 ± 0.43; median: 2.60) than with arms-down (2.39 ± 0.61; median: 2.40) or the right-arm-raised (2.33 ± 0.57; median: 2.40). A significant difference in VES was observed between the both-arms-raised and right-arm-raised groups (P = .04). DDM values were lowest with both-arms-raised (1.02 ± 0.64; median: 0.85), followed by arm-down (1.89 ± 1.19; median: 1.50) and right-arm raised (1.65 ± 0.98; median: 1.56). Significant differences in DDM were observed between the both-arms-raised position and the other two positions (P < .05 and P < .001, respectively).

Conclusion: Positioning patients with both-arms-raised effectively minimized motion-related artifacts during breast MRI. Conversely, the right-arm-raised position was associated with increased artifacts and should be avoided to maintain image quality.