Keywords:
Musculoskeletal joint, MR, Diagnostic procedure, Athletic injuries, Trauma
Authors:
S. Riva, G. Guzzardi, M. Barini, A. Paschè, M. Abruzzese, A. Carriero; Novara/IT
DOI:
10.1594/ecr2018/C-0177
Aims and objectives
Our aim was to evaluate the evidence for the diagnostic efficacy of 0,3-T MRI for knee injuries using arthroscopy as the reference standard.
Over the years,
with the evolution of machines and study protocols,
MR has been confirmed as a non-invasive and highly sensitive instrument in the evaluation of osteo-ligamentous structures,
articular surfaces and peri-articular knee tissue.
Arthroscopy,
on the opposite side,
confirms a highly sensitive and specific procedure for evaluating endocapsular structures,
but invasive and sometimes not well accepted as diagnostic mode.
High-intensity field devices (> 1T) allow for spatial and contrast resolution and a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) not obtainable on low-field equipment (<0.5T),
if not increasing scanning time at the expense of increasing artifacts from movement.
In this study,
we emphasized the use of low-field equipment dedicated to the joints,
cheaper and more versatile than the large and expensive high-field equipment of proven diagnostic quality.