| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4080309 | Orthopaedics and Trauma | 2011 | 12 Pages |
Magnetic resonance imaging is widely used in the investigation of disorders of the musculoskeletal system.When a patient is placed in a strong magnetic field a signal can be obtained, the frequency of which is related to the strength of the magnetic field. By changing the field strength so it depends on location, it is possible to create an image of the patient. The image intensity depends on several inherent properties of the tissues including hydrogen content, and T1 and T2 relaxation times. MRI is uniquely able to control the sensitivity of the image to these properties to generate different types of image contrast, including T1, T2 and proton density weighting, with and without fat suppression. The most appropriate image for a particular application is a compromise between the conflicting requirements of image resolution, time and image quality.A number of artefacts including chemical shift, metal and magic angle artefacts may degrade images of the musculoskeletal system; however these can be minimized by appropriate choice of imaging parameters.Newer techniques such as delayed gadolinium enhanced MRI of cartilage, dynamic contrast enhanced MRI and ultrashort echo time imaging are now becoming available and these further extend the capabilities of MRI.
