0.3 and 1.5 Tesla Mri

Sometimes, if my daily agenda allows to spread my curiosity (time is never enough!), I make a comparison between 0.3 and 1.5 Tesla Mri imaging studying the same patient.

These are the pictures of a sprained medial collateral ligament of a professional football player, quite similar to what is shown in my recent post medial collateral ligament tear.

collateral-tear

Coronal T2w (left) and Sagittal T2w (right) Mri scan (0.3 tesla)

I always complete my study with a dynamic ultrasound exam; in this patient the presence of a calcification is noted, not visible on Mri scans.

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Comparison between Axial and Coronal Mri scans of the same patient.

sagittal-comparison

Sagittal Pd Tse Fs (1.5 tesla) and Fast Stir (0.3 Tesla).

How Much is Enough?

Taking inspiration from an interesting paper – Advances in Musculoskeletal MRI – Technical Considerations – I was asking myself: how many Tesla are needed to make a correct diagnosis of knee pathology? Recent MRI technology developments have brought new powerful systems; some radiology departments start using 3 Tesla Mri imaging systems for knee exams. But what is the real added value on musculoskeletal imaging? Not considering special techniques like spectroscopy or molecular imaging, what can I see more than a dedicated system does not reveal? I often wondered if my report would change by scanning the same patient with a 3 Tesla Mri. Three days ago a man came to my department bringing a previous 3 Tesla Mri exam: what a nice chance to reveal if there was any difference! Take a look at the comparison between 0.3, 1.5 and 3 Tesla images of the same patient; history of patellar fracture, femoro-patellar chondropathy and posterior horn medial meniscus tear. High field Mri for knee evaluation: is it always needed? 

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