Quick Overview

Artifacts either by distorting the k-space trajectory (i.e. due to imperfect shimming) or as a consequence of the reduced bandwidth in the phase encode direction, commonly with EPI sequences.
While a standard spin warp-based sequence has an infinitely large bandwidth in the phase encode direction (about 1 or 2 kH), the bandwidth in EPI is related to the time between the gradient echoes (about a millisecond).
Hence even small frequency offsets can result in significant shifts of the signal in the phase encoding direction. Segmentation can introduce ghosting if there are significant difference in the amplitude and phase of the signal. This can be a particular problem when trying to acquire the segments in rapid succession.

Suitable choices of excitation schemes and/or subsequent correction can help to reduce this artifact. The signal from fat can easily be offset by a large fraction of the FOV, and must be suppressed. The effect of frequency offsets can be reduced by collecting data with more than one excitation, which effectively increases the bandwidth in the phase encoding direction.

Quick Overview

This artifact is uncommon with modern MRI equipment, but possible. It can occur if there are bad memory locations or bad connectors in the parallel data bus of the computer.

This artifact is the result of a hardware failure and must be addressed by a service representative.

Quick Overview

Movement of the heart causes blurring and ghosting in the images. The artifacts appear in the phase encoding direction, independent of the direction of the motion.

These artifacts can be reduced by using cardiac synchronization: triggering, gating or retrospective triggering. Maximum reduction can be achieved by using triggering in combination with flow compensation, respiratory triggering or breath hold and regional saturation techniques.

See also Motion Artifact.

Quick Overview

Pulsatile cerebro spinal fluid flow produces ghost artifacts that are superimposed in the image.

Flow compensation should be used to reduce these artifacts. This applies an additional gradient to eliminate phase differences for both stationary and moving spins at the echo time. At TE no phase differences is measured. If flow compensation is applied and there are still flow artifacts, cardiac triggering is an additional option to reduce these artifacts.
See also Motion Artifact.

Quick Overview
Please note that there are different common names for this artifact.

Patient movement during the scans are often an imaging problem. Artifacts from patient movement are widely varied due to a dependence when during k-space filling the motion occurs. When the patient moving causes only in the last few seconds of the scan at that time the outside edges of K-space were being filled, and as a result the artifact does not overly affect the image (there are only fine lines).

A good cooperation between the patient and the operator is the best way to avoid these artifacts, in difficult cases a sedative may help. If a compliance of the patient is not possible (e.g. pain, stroke, or consciousness), choose fast scan methods like gradient echo or single shot technique.

See also Motion Artifact and Phase Encoded Motion Artifact.