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Gadolinium-enhanced MR imaging demonstrates abduction-caused hip ischemia and its reversal in piglets
D Jaramillo1, O L Villegas-Medina, D K Doty
1Department of Radiology, Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Purpose:
To determine if gadolinium-enhanced MR imaging can detect early reversible ischemia of the capital femoral epiphysis and physis induced by hip hyperabduction in piglets.
Materials And Methods:
Thirteen 1- to 3-week-old piglets were placed in maximal bilateral hip abduction and then studied with dynamic gadolinium-enhanced MR imaging 1-6 hr later to assess ischemia of the 26 femoral heads. The piglets were then allowed to ambulate freely for 1 or 7 days and reimaged in neutral position to assess reperfusion. We evaluated enhancement on MR images and compared them with histologic findings.
Results:
Decreased or absent enhancement, interpreted as ischemia, developed after maximal hip abduction in all 26 cartilaginous epiphyses and 85% of the 26 physes. The most frequently seen abnormality was a sharply marginated, nonenhancing area in the anterior part of the femoral head. A smaller area of decreased enhancement developed in the posterior part of the femoral head adjacent to the acetabular rim. The secondary center of ossification was ischemic in 10 (56%) of the 18 hips after 1 hr of abduction and in all 8 hips after 4 or 6 hr (p = .02). The overall severity of ischemia was greater with longer abduction times (p < .001) and greater degrees of abduction (p < .01). Reperfusion was complete in two (17%) of the 12 hips after 1 day of ambulation and in all 10 (100%) after 1 week of ambulation.
Conclusion:
Enhanced MR imaging detects early ischemia of the epiphyseal and physeal cartilage and the epiphyseal marrow. In piglets, ischemia due to maximal abduction is reversible if corrected within 6 hr.