Human patellar cartilage: echo planar diffusion-weighted MR imaging findings at 3.0 T

PurposeTo explore the findings of diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and the diffusion characteristics on patellar cartilage in healthy adults.Materials and methodsThirty healthy subjects were studied on SIEMENS 3.0-T Trio Tim magnetic resonance (MR) scanner. The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values of the patellar cartilage were measured in different areas.ResultsThe patellar cartilage demonstrated homogeneously high signal intensity on the images of DWI and maps of ADC. The ADC values displayed a spatial dependency, approximately (1.17±0.31)×10−3 mm2/s of the entire cartilage.ConclusionsDiffusion-weighted MR imaging may display articular cartilage structure. There is a consistent pattern of spatial variation of the ADC values.