Peer Review History

Original SubmissionDecember 7, 2021
Decision Letter - Cem M. Deniz, Editor

PONE-D-21-38646Wave-controlled aliasing in parallel imaging (Wave-CAIPI): Accelerating speed for the MRI-based diagnosis of enhancing intracranial lesions compared to magnetization-prepared gradient echoPLOS ONE

Dear Dr. Yim,

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We look forward to receiving your revised manuscript.

Kind regards,

Cem M. Deniz

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

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This research was supported by the Chung-Ang University Research Grants in 2021.”

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Additional Editor Comments (if provided):

Your manuscript was reviewed by an expert in diagnostic radiology. Reviewer found the study to be a complementary to previous research and it has a broad interest. I agree with the reviewer and suggest a minor revision for the manuscript.

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Reviewers' comments:

Reviewer's Responses to Questions

Comments to the Author

1. Is the manuscript technically sound, and do the data support the conclusions?

The manuscript must describe a technically sound piece of scientific research with data that supports the conclusions. Experiments must have been conducted rigorously, with appropriate controls, replication, and sample sizes. The conclusions must be drawn appropriately based on the data presented.

Reviewer #1: Yes

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2. Has the statistical analysis been performed appropriately and rigorously?

Reviewer #1: Yes

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3. Have the authors made all data underlying the findings in their manuscript fully available?

The PLOS Data policy requires authors to make all data underlying the findings described in their manuscript fully available without restriction, with rare exception (please refer to the Data Availability Statement in the manuscript PDF file). The data should be provided as part of the manuscript or its supporting information, or deposited to a public repository. For example, in addition to summary statistics, the data points behind means, medians and variance measures should be available. If there are restrictions on publicly sharing data—e.g. participant privacy or use of data from a third party—those must be specified.

Reviewer #1: Yes

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4. Is the manuscript presented in an intelligible fashion and written in standard English?

PLOS ONE does not copyedit accepted manuscripts, so the language in submitted articles must be clear, correct, and unambiguous. Any typographical or grammatical errors should be corrected at revision, so please note any specific errors here.

Reviewer #1: Yes

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5. Review Comments to the Author

Please use the space provided to explain your answers to the questions above. You may also include additional comments for the author, including concerns about dual publication, research ethics, or publication ethics. (Please upload your review as an attachment if it exceeds 20,000 characters)

Reviewer #1: This is a well-conducted study evaluating an ultrafast MRI technique, wave-CAIPI, against conventional post-contrast imaging using the MPRAGE sequence. The authors demonstrate high agreement for the detection and diagnosis of enhancing lesions using wave-CAIPI MPRAGE as compared to conventional MPRAGE in half the scan time. The manuscript is clearly written, and the text is supported by appropriately chosen tables and figures. This work complements recently published work on the clinical validation of the wave-CAIPI technique and will be of broad interest to clinicians and researchers in neuroimaging.

Abstract: The motivation and purpose are clearly defined, and the conclusion is consistent with the findings of the paper.

Introduction: The introduction provides a good overview of the problem and provides appropriate motivation and context for the current comparative evaluation of post-contrast wave-CAIPI MPRAGE. It would be helpful to cite recently published work evaluating post-contrast wave-CAIPI MPRAGE for detection of enhancing lesions, which the results of the current manuscript affirm: Filho ALMG et al. Eur Radiol. 2022 Dec 2;1-11.

Methods:

- Image Acquisition: Was the order of wave-CAIPI and conventional MPRAGE imaging randomized after contrast injection? The time elapsed between injection of contrast and imaging may influence the conspicuity of enhancing lesions, particularly on the MPRAGE sequence. A sentence clarifying the order of the sequences should be included in the methods, and a discussion of the order and its impact on the results should be included in the discussion.

Results:

- Were any other artifacts other than motion (e.g., flow-related artifact) evaluated for? Could these artifacts contribute to false positives for enhancing lesions?

- Otherwise, thoroughly described and transparently documented in the tables and figures.

Discussion:

- The authors should provide a comprehensive discussion of other wave-CAIPI papers that have been published demonstrating the equivalent evaluation of enhancing lesions using wave-CAIPI T1 SPACE (see: Filho ALMG et al. J Neuroimaging. 2021 Sep;31(5):893-901; Filho ALMG et al. Front Neurol. 2020 Oct 27;11:587327) and the evaluation of demyelinating and white matter lesions using wave-CAIPI FLAIR imaging (see: Ngamsombat C et al. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 2021 Sep;42(9):1584-1590).

Conclusion:

- Concise and highlights the main conclusions of this work.

References: Aside from the additions suggested above, appropriate as cited.

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Reviewer #1: No

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Revision 1

First of all, your requests and comments not only strengthened our article but also widened our perspectives. We tried our best to embrace your remarks on the submission web site as much as maintaining the original contents. Below are responses and answers referring your notes; we are always ready to take your further requests and constructive opinions if needed. We appreciate your time and efforts.

Please use the space provided to explain your answers to the questions above. You may also include additional comments for the author, including concerns about dual publication, research ethics, or publication ethics. (Please upload your review as an attachment if it exceeds 20,000 characters)

Reviewer #1: This is a well-conducted study evaluating an ultrafast MRI technique, wave-CAIPI, against conventional post-contrast imaging using the MPRAGE sequence. The authors demonstrate high agreement for the detection and diagnosis of enhancing lesions using wave-CAIPI MPRAGE as compared to conventional MPRAGE in half the scan time. The manuscript is clearly written, and the text is supported by appropriately chosen tables and figures. This work complements recently published work on the clinical validation of the wave-CAIPI technique and will be of broad interest to clinicians and researchers in neuroimaging.

Abstract: The motivation and purpose are clearly defined, and the conclusion is consistent with the findings of the paper.

Introduction: The introduction provides a good overview of the problem and provides appropriate motivation and context for the current comparative evaluation of post-contrast wave-CAIPI MPRAGE. It would be helpful to cite recently published work evaluating post-contrast wave-CAIPI MPRAGE for detection of enhancing lesions, which the results of the current manuscript affirm: Filho ALMG et al. Eur Radiol. 2022 Dec 2;1-11.

Response to the comment: Thank you for your valuable suggestions. We added the recent research as additional reference as you suggested.

Also, recent study demonstrated that fast scan using contrast-enhanced Wave-CAIPI 3D T1-MPRAGE was noninferior to the 3D T1-MPRAGE sequence in visualizing and diagnosing enhancing brain lesions.

Methods:

- Image Acquisition: Was the order of wave-CAIPI and conventional MPRAGE imaging randomized after contrast injection? The time elapsed between injection of contrast and imaging may influence the conspicuity of enhancing lesions, particularly on the MPRAGE sequence. A sentence clarifying the order of the sequences should be included in the methods, and a discussion of the order and its impact on the results should be included in the discussion.

Response to the comment: Thank you for your valuable suggestions. We added related sentences as below.

Methods;

Post-contrast MR scanning was executed just after the injection of contrast media in the following order: Wave-CAIPI MPRAGE � conventional MPRAGE.

Discussion;

Lastly, even though the entire study sample showed the equivalent conspicuity of enhancing lesions in this study, image scanning order might have been influenced conspicuity of enhancement due to the time elapsed from contrast injection. It seems alternating the acquisition order and comparing the images with different acquisition order is optimal to prevent the possible bias in determining conspicuity of enhancement, but it was not feasible in daily practice since it could cause other bias during controlling the sequence or communication error among the technologists. Alternating the acquisition order in scan-by scan manner could be a possible solution to resolve the issue in the future study.

Results:

- Were any other artifacts other than motion (e.g., flow-related artifact) evaluated for? Could these artifacts contribute to false positives for enhancing lesions?

- Otherwise, thoroughly described and transparently documented in the tables and figures.

Response to the comment: Thank you for your valuable comment.

We agree with your idea that artifacts can affect creating pseudo-lesions. However, observers did not include artifact-like pseudo-lesions in their diagnosis as we underwent training session before the analysis and discussed what to diagnose as true lesion. Also, we excluded all images with severe artifact that could create false positive lesions in this study.

Discussion:

- The authors should provide a comprehensive discussion of other wave-CAIPI papers that have been published demonstrating the equivalent evaluation of enhancing lesions using wave-CAIPI T1 SPACE (see: Filho ALMG et al. J Neuroimaging. 2021 Sep;31(5):893-901; Filho ALMG et al. Front Neurol. 2020 Oct 27;11:587327) and the evaluation of demyelinating and white matter lesions using wave-CAIPI FLAIR imaging (see: Ngamsombat C et al. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 2021 Sep;42(9):1584-1590).

Response to the comment: Thank you for your valuable suggestions. We included related contents in discussion section as below.

Also, there have been approaches to apply Wave-CAIPI to other sequences such as FLAIR or 3D fast/turbo spine echo image post-contrast T1 (SPACE) in diagnosing intracranial lesions. One study comparing the cerebral white matter lesion volume between Wave-FLAIR and conventional FLAIR showed comparable diagnostic quality [27]. Further, recent studies applying Wave-CAIPI to post-contrast T1 (SPACE) revealed that fast scan using Wave-CAIPI provided equivalent visualization of enhancing lesions and overall diagnostic quality for evaluating intracranial enhancing lesions [28, 29].

27. American Journal of Neuroradiology September 2021, 42 (9) 1584-1590;

Evaluation of Ultrafast Wave–Controlled Aliasing in Parallel Imaging 3D-FLAIR in the Visualization and Volumetric Estimation of Cerebral White Matter Lesions

28. Front Neurol. 2020 Oct 27;11:587327. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2020.587327. eCollection 2020.

Accelerated Post-contrast Wave-CAIPI T1 SPACE Achieves Equivalent Diagnostic Performance Compared With Standard T1 SPACE for the Detection of Brain Metastases in Clinical 3T MRI

29. J Neuroimaging. 2021 Sep;31(5):893-901. doi: 10.1111/jon.12893. Epub 2021 Jun 3.

MRI Highly Accelerated Wave-CAIPI T1-SPACE versus Standard T1-SPACE to detect brain gadolinium-enhancing lesions at 3T

Conclusion:

- Concise and highlights the main conclusions of this work.

References: Aside from the additions suggested above, appropriate as cited.

Attachments
Attachment
Submitted filename: 20230322_Response to Reviewers.docx
Decision Letter - Cem M. Deniz, Editor

Wave-controlled aliasing in parallel imaging (Wave-CAIPI) : Accelerati ng speed for the MRI-based diagnosis of enhancing intracranial lesions compared to magnetization-prepared gradient echo

PONE-D-21-38646R1

Dear Dr. Yim,

We’re pleased to inform you that your manuscript has been judged scientifically suitable for publication and will be formally accepted for publication once it meets all outstanding technical requirements.

Within one week, you’ll receive an e-mail detailing the required amendments. When these have been addressed, you’ll receive a formal acceptance letter and your manuscript will be scheduled for publication.

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If your institution or institutions have a press office, please notify them about your upcoming paper to help maximize its impact. If they’ll be preparing press materials, please inform our press team as soon as possible -- no later than 48 hours after receiving the formal acceptance. Your manuscript will remain under strict press embargo until 2 pm Eastern Time on the date of publication. For more information, please contact onepress@plos.org.

Kind regards,

Cem M. Deniz

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

Additional Editor Comments (optional):

Congratulations on the acceptance of your manuscript.

Reviewers' comments:

Reviewer's Responses to Questions

Comments to the Author

1. If the authors have adequately addressed your comments raised in a previous round of review and you feel that this manuscript is now acceptable for publication, you may indicate that here to bypass the “Comments to the Author” section, enter your conflict of interest statement in the “Confidential to Editor” section, and submit your "Accept" recommendation.

Reviewer #1: All comments have been addressed

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2. Is the manuscript technically sound, and do the data support the conclusions?

The manuscript must describe a technically sound piece of scientific research with data that supports the conclusions. Experiments must have been conducted rigorously, with appropriate controls, replication, and sample sizes. The conclusions must be drawn appropriately based on the data presented.

Reviewer #1: Yes

**********

3. Has the statistical analysis been performed appropriately and rigorously?

Reviewer #1: Yes

**********

4. Have the authors made all data underlying the findings in their manuscript fully available?

The PLOS Data policy requires authors to make all data underlying the findings described in their manuscript fully available without restriction, with rare exception (please refer to the Data Availability Statement in the manuscript PDF file). The data should be provided as part of the manuscript or its supporting information, or deposited to a public repository. For example, in addition to summary statistics, the data points behind means, medians and variance measures should be available. If there are restrictions on publicly sharing data—e.g. participant privacy or use of data from a third party—those must be specified.

Reviewer #1: Yes

**********

5. Is the manuscript presented in an intelligible fashion and written in standard English?

PLOS ONE does not copyedit accepted manuscripts, so the language in submitted articles must be clear, correct, and unambiguous. Any typographical or grammatical errors should be corrected at revision, so please note any specific errors here.

Reviewer #1: Yes

**********

6. Review Comments to the Author

Please use the space provided to explain your answers to the questions above. You may also include additional comments for the author, including concerns about dual publication, research ethics, or publication ethics. (Please upload your review as an attachment if it exceeds 20,000 characters)

Reviewer #1: The authors have thoroughly addressed all of my review comments. I have no further edits to suggest. I commend the authors on a job well done.

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7. PLOS authors have the option to publish the peer review history of their article (what does this mean?). If published, this will include your full peer review and any attached files.

If you choose “no”, your identity will remain anonymous but your review may still be made public.

Do you want your identity to be public for this peer review? For information about this choice, including consent withdrawal, please see our Privacy Policy.

Reviewer #1: No

**********

Formally Accepted
Acceptance Letter - Cem M. Deniz, Editor

PONE-D-21-38646R1

Wave-controlled aliasing in parallel imaging (Wave-CAIPI): Accelerating speed for the MRI-based diagnosis of enhancing intracranial lesions compared to magnetization-prepared gradient echo

Dear Dr. Yim:

I'm pleased to inform you that your manuscript has been deemed suitable for publication in PLOS ONE. Congratulations! Your manuscript is now with our production department.

If your institution or institutions have a press office, please let them know about your upcoming paper now to help maximize its impact. If they'll be preparing press materials, please inform our press team within the next 48 hours. Your manuscript will remain under strict press embargo until 2 pm Eastern Time on the date of publication. For more information please contact onepress@plos.org.

If we can help with anything else, please email us at plosone@plos.org.

Thank you for submitting your work to PLOS ONE and supporting open access.

Kind regards,

PLOS ONE Editorial Office Staff

on behalf of

Dr. Cem M. Deniz

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

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