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Three-tesla imaging of the knee: initial experience

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Abstract

Purpose

To assess 3-T imaging of the knee.

Materials and methods

We reviewed 357 3-T magnetic resonance images of the knee obtained using a dedicated knee coil. From 58 patients who had arthroscopy we determined the sensitivity and specificity for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear and medial and lateral meniscal tear.

Results

A chemical shift artifact showed prominently at 3 T even after improvements had been made by increasing the bandwidth. For complete ACL tear the sensitivity was 100% (95% confidence interval, CI, 75.30–100.00), and the specificity was 97.9% (95% CI 87.7–99.9). For the medial meniscus the sensitivity was 100.00% (95% CI 90.0–100.00), and the specificity was 83.3%(95% CI 66.6–95.3). For the lateral meniscus the sensitivity was 66.7% (95% CI 38.4–88.2), and the specificity was 97.6% (95% CI 87.1–99.9).

Conclusions

In general 3-T imaging allows a favorable display of anatomy and pathology. The lateral meniscus was assessed to be weaker than the other anatomic structures. Three-tesla imaging allows increased signal-to-noise ratio, increased resolution, and faster scanning times.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Henry Ford Hospital, 2799 West Grand Boulevard, Detroit, MI, 48202, USA

    Joseph G. Craig, Joseph Blechinger, David Hearshen, J. Antonio Bouffard, Mark Diamond & Marnix T. van Holsbeeck

  2. Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI, USA

    Lily Go

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  1. Joseph G. Craig
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  2. Lily Go
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  3. Joseph Blechinger
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  4. David Hearshen
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  5. J. Antonio Bouffard
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  6. Mark Diamond
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  7. Marnix T. van Holsbeeck
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Correspondence to Joseph G. Craig.

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Craig, J.G., Go, L., Blechinger, J. et al. Three-tesla imaging of the knee: initial experience. Skeletal Radiol 34, 453–461 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00256-005-0919-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00256-005-0919-6

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