Purpose
To measure the transverse relaxation rate (R2*) of lumbar vertebral marrow using multi-echo T2*-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and to correlate results with bone mineral density (BMD) determined by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA).
Methods and Materials
Study population
This ongoing prospective study is conducted at the University Medical Center Greifswald and was approved by the Medical Ethical Committee.
Written informed consent was obtained from each patient prior to the study.
Included were male and female patients with a clinical indicated MRI of the lower back and a DEXA.
Patients with contraindication to MRI,
pregnant women and patients with a history of lower spine surgery,
bone lesions or metabolic bone disorder were excluded from the study to prevent signal distortion (reference 1)....
Results
DEXA
Mean BMD was 1.04,
1.13,
1.21,
and 1.23 g/cm2 in lumbar vertebra (LV) 1 to LV4 respectively.
Intra- & Interreader Variability
The intrareader variability analysis showed that each reader on his own managed to produce reliable values (table 1),
while the interreader variability of L1 and L2 exceeds our self set goal of a mean bias below 5% (table 2).
Meaning it is hard to reproduce R2* values between multiple readers when measuring L1 and L2.
A methodological problem has to be assumed,
and...
Conclusion
Our results show good correlation between R2* and BMD,
indicating that T2*-weighted MRI has potential for measuring lumbar trabecular thickness without ionizing radiation.
References
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Jinnai,
I.,
Matsuda,
A.,
Murohashi,
I.,
Bessho,
M.,
Saito,
M.,
Hirashima,
K.,
et al.
(1997).
Bone marrow patterns in patients with aplastic anaemia and myelodysplastic syndrome: observations with magnetic resonance imaging European journal of haematology,
59(3),
155-161.
2) Link,
T.
(2002).
Magnetresonanztomographie in der Diagnostik der Osteoporose Magnetic Resonance Tomography in the Diagnosis of Osteoporosis.
Akt Rheumatol.
3) Wehrli,
F.
W.,
Ford,
J.
C.,
& Haddad,
J.
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(1995).
Osteoporosis: clinical assessment with quantitative MR imaging in diagnosis Radiology,
196(3),
631-641.
4)...
Personal Information
René Laqua
Department of Diagnostic and Neuroradiology
Ernst-Moritz-Arndt University Medical Center Greifswald
GERMANY
Email:
[email protected]