Five-Minute Five-Sequence Knee MRI Using Combined Simultaneous Multislice and Parallel Imaging Acceleration:...

Area of Science:

• Radiology
• Medical Imaging
• Musculoskeletal MRI

Background:

• Rapid knee MRI protocols combining simultaneous multislice (SMS) and parallel imaging (PI) acceleration can significantly reduce acquisition time.
• Clinical validation is essential to confirm the efficacy of these accelerated MRI techniques for knee evaluations.
• Standard knee MRI protocols typically involve twofold PI acceleration and take 10 minutes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the diagnostic performance of a 5-minute, fourfold SMS-PI-accelerated knee MRI protocol with a standard 10-minute, twofold PI-accelerated protocol.
• To evaluate the efficacy of accelerated MRI techniques across both 1.5 T and 3.0 T magnetic resonance imaging scanners.

Main Methods:

• Prospective enrollment of 252 adults with painful knee conditions between April 2018 and October 2019.
• Participants underwent both a 5-minute, fourfold SMS-PI-accelerated TSE knee MRI and a 10-minute, twofold PI-accelerated TSE knee MRI at 1.5 T or 3.0 T.
• Three radiologists independently assessed meniscal, tendinous, ligamentous, and osseocartilaginous injuries, with statistical analysis of intermethod agreement and diagnostic performance (AUC).

Main Results:

• Intermethod agreement was good at 1.5 T (κ >0.71) and very good at 3.0 T (κ >0.85).
• The 5-minute and 10-minute MRI protocols demonstrated similar diagnostic performance at both 1.5 T (AUCs >0.78) and 3.0 T (AUCs >0.83).
• No statistically significant differences in diagnostic performance were observed between the accelerated and standard protocols (P > .32).

Conclusions:

• The 5-minute, five-sequence, SMS-PI-accelerated knee MRI protocol exhibits comparable diagnostic performance to the standard 10-minute, PI-accelerated protocol.
• This accelerated MRI technique is effective at both 1.5 T and 3.0 T, offering a time-efficient option for knee imaging.
• The findings support the clinical utility of rapid, accelerated MRI for evaluating knee pathologies.