FRACTURE MRI: evaluation of imaging capability in hand tendon visualization using healthy volunteer MRI

Area of Science:

• Radiology and Imaging Science
• Musculoskeletal Imaging
• Advanced MRI Techniques

Background:

• Accurate visualization of hand tendons is crucial for diagnosing injuries and planning treatments.
• Conventional MRI sequences can have limitations in depicting fine tendon structures.
• Fast Field Echo Resembling a CT using Restricted Echo-spacing (FRACTURE) is an emerging MRI technique.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the conspicuity of hand tendons using FRACTURE MRI.
• To assess the utility of FRACTURE-derived volume rendering (VR) images.
• To compare FRACTURE with conventional MRI sequences (PD-VISTA, T2WI) in healthy volunteers.

Main Methods:

• Ten healthy volunteers underwent MRI including FRACTURE, PD-VISTA, and T2WI in neutral and ulnar deviation.
• FRACTURE data was used to create cross-sectional and VR images.
• Tendon conspicuity, cross-sectional area, and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) were quantitatively and qualitatively assessed by experienced readers.

Main Results:

• FRACTURE achieved significantly higher qualitative conspicuity scores compared to PD-VISTA and T2WI (p < 0.001).
• FRACTURE demonstrated significantly higher CNR for muscle-tendon contrast (12.63 vs 7.91, p < 0.017).
• Tendon cross-sectional area measurements showed strong correlations but systematic bias between sequences.

Conclusions:

• FRACTURE provides superior hand tendon visualization compared to conventional MRI sequences.
• FRACTURE-derived VR images offer valuable three-dimensional anatomical insights.
• FRACTURE shows potential for enhancing surgical planning and procedure selection in hand surgery.