Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 11, 2025
Quantitative Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Skeletal Muscle Disease
Published on: December 18, 2016
Inter-vendor and inter-observer reliability of diffusion tensor imaging in the musculoskeletal system: a multiscanner
Vito Chianca1,2, Domenico Albano3, Stefania Rizzo4
1Clinica di Radiologia EOC IIMSI, Lugano, Switzerland. vitochianca@gmail.com.
Background:
To evaluate the inter-observer and inter-vendor reliability of diffusion tensor imaging parameters in the musculoskeletal system.
Methods:
This prospective study included six healthy volunteers three men (mean age: 42; range: 31-52 years) and three women (mean age: 36; range: 30-44 years). Each subject was scanned using different 3 Tesla magnetic resonance scanners from three different vendors at three different sites bilaterally. First, the intra-class correlation coefficient was used to determine between-observers agreement for overall measurements and clinical sites. Next, between-group comparisons were made through the nonparametric Friedman's test. Finally, the Bland-Altman method was used to determine agreement among the three scanner measurements, comparing them two by two.
Results:
A total of 792 measurement were calculated. ICC reported high levels of agreement between the two observers. ICC related to MD, FA, and RD measurements ranged from 0.88 (95% CI 0.85-0.90) to 0.95 (95% CI 0.94-0.96), from 0.85 (95% CI 0.81-0.88) to 0.95 (95% CI 0.93-0.96), and from 0.89 (0.85-0.90) to 0.92 (0.90-0.94). No statistically significant inter-vendor differences were observed. The Bland-Altmann method confirmed a high correlation between parameter values.
Conclusion:
An excellent inter-observer and inter-vendor reliability was found in our study.
