In Vivo sodium multiple quantum spectroscopy of human articular cartilage

✍ Scribed by Ravinder Reddy; Shuchun Li; Elizabeth A. Noyszewski; J. Bruce Kneeland; John S. Leigh

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1997
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 671 KB
• Volume: 38
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0740-3194
• DOI: 10.1002/mrm.1910380208

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

The authors report, for the first time, sodium properties of human articular cartilage in vivo using sodium multiple‐quantum‐filtered methods with a surface coil. A flip angle‐independent, phase‐cycled pulse sequence was used to obtain triple‐quantum‐filtered spectra as a function of preparation time. Biexponential relaxation rates were calculated by fitting the triple‐quantum‐filtered spectral amplitudes to a theoretical expression. Theoretical analysis of the flip angle dependence of even rank two‐quantum coherence (T~2~^2^), odd rank two‐quantum coherence (T~2~^3^), and triple‐quantum coherence are presented and verified against experimental results on a cartilage specimen. Sodium multiple‐quantum‐filtered spectral lineshapes obtained in vivo correlate well with those observed on in vivo specimens. Relaxation rates obtained from asymptomatic volunteers were found to be: T~2rise~= 1.0 ± 0.12 ms, T~2decay~= 12.0 ± 0.75 ms (mean ± SD). The diagnostic potential of this method in detecting early changes in articular cartilage is described.