- 期刊
- OpenAccess
Comparison of Three Dimensional Isotropic Turbo Spin Echo and Conventional Two Dimensional Turbo Spin Echo T2‑weighted Imaging in the Anatomy Detail at the Cervical Spine
摘要
Purpose: To compare the capabilities of three‑dimensional (3D) isotropic turbo spin echo (TSE) volume isotropic TSE acquisition (VISTA) T2‑weighted imaging (T2WI) and the conventional method of two‑dimensional (2D) TSE T2WI for the delineation of cervical spine anatomy including the spinal cord contour, intramedullary details, nerve roots in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) space, CSF, neural foramen, foraminal neurovascular structures, posterior margin of the vertebral body, posterior margin of intervertebral discs (C4/5), facet joint, and uncovertebral joint. Materials and Methods: We enrolled consecutive patients who underwent cervical magnetic resonance (MR) examination between January 2019 and March 2019. The routine cervical spine MR was done on a 3T MR scanner and the protocol comprised the pulse sequence of the 2D TSE T2WI. In addition, 3D isotropic VISTA T2WI was conducted. All analyses were performed on the axial section from mid‑C4 to mid‑C5. After the initial imaging quality evaluation, of the consecutive 65 patients, 17 patients were excluded from the study due to the presence of metal implants, significant motion or pulsatile artifacts, and poor imaging quality. Subsequently, 48 patients were included in this study. Of these 48 patients, 29 were men, and the mean age was 51.3 years (range: 38-67 years). Three experienced radiologists interpreted the images of same location side‑by‑side and recorded results on imaging quality individually. Interobserver agreement of the qualitative in vivo evaluation was measured by using Cohen's kappa correlation coefficient. Results: The initial imaging quality of the 3D TSE T2‑weighted cervical spine imaging was acceptable except for the internal architecture (H sign) of the spinal cord. Compared with the 2D TSE T2WI quality at the cervical spine, 3D TSE isotropic T2WI yielded improved imaging of the nerve roots in the CSF space and neural foramen. The 3D imaging had less flow void artifacts in the CSF, but the difference was nonsignificant. Interobserver agreement in scoring visibility of the evaluated structures was substantial for 2D TSE and 3DTSE isotropic T2WI (k = 0.683 and k = 0.692). Conclusion: The 3D isotropic TSE T2WI can provide comparable anatomical visualization of the cervical spine to 2D TSE‑weighted imaging and better delineation of the nerve roots in the CSF, neural foramina, and artifact‑free CSF flow. The shorter scanning time and capability of multi‑planar reconstruction are advantages of the 3D isotropic TSE T2WI for the cervical spine examination.