Magnetic resonance imaging clinics of North America
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Magn Reson Imaging Clin N Am · Feb 2011
ReviewDiffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging for the evaluation of musculoskeletal tumors.
Conventional MR imaging provides low specificity in the differential diagnosis of musculoskeletal (MSK) tumors and is unable to offer information about the extent of tumoral necrosis and the presence of viable cells, information crucial to assess treatment response and prognosis. Therefore, diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) is now used with conventional MR imaging to improve diagnostic accuracy and treatment evaluation. This article discusses the technical aspects of DWI, particularly the quantitative and qualitative interpretation of images in MSK tumors. The clinical application of DWI for tumor detection, characterization, differentiation of tumor tissue from others, and assessment of treatment response are emphasized.
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Magn Reson Imaging Clin N Am · Nov 2009
ReviewMR imaging of traumatic and overuse injuries of the wrist and hand in athletes.
Traumatic and overuse injuries of the hand and wrist are common in athletes. Increasingly, MR imaging is being used to complement clinical and radiographic assessment in the diagnosis and management of these injuries. MR imaging is able to image accurately the bones, tendons, ligaments, nerves, and other small structures of the hand and wrist. This article provides an overview of traumatic and overuse injuries of the hand and wrist in athletes and a review of the MR imaging appearances.
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Although plain radiography remains the most important and cost-effective imaging for screening and characterizing osseous injuries, it has been well recognized that pediatric fractures can occur without radiographic abnormalities. The superb capability of MR imaging in demonstrating marrow edema, cartilage defects, and soft tissue injuries makes it an essential adjunct in the further evaluation of trauma to the growing skeleton. The key MR imaging findings of growth plate injuries, stress fractures, avulsion injuries, osteochondritis dissecans, transient patellar dislocation, and soft tissue injuries are described in this article.
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This article discusses the role of MR imaging in the evaluation of musculoskeletal soft tissue masses, reviewing limitations in its ability to establish tissue diagnosis and its critical role in determining lesion extent. It also reviews benign soft tissue masses, such as fibrous lesions, popliteal cysts, lipomatous lesions, and neurofibromatous tumors. ⋯ Differentiation between high- and low-flow vascular and lymphatic anomalies is reviewed. The article concludes with a discussion of the uncommon malignant musculoskeletal soft tissue tumors, focusing on infantile fibrosarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, synovial sarcoma, and granulocytic sarcoma.
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This article provides an overview of the current use of MR imaging in the evaluation of pediatric bone marrow disorders, illustrating their appearance on commonly used MR imaging sequences. Recognition of normal developmental bone marrow changes and variants is important in pediatric MR imaging interpretation, and in selection of appropriate acquisition sequences. This overview should serve as a practical aid in the interpretation of bone marrow lesions in children.