title: Gadolinium diethylenetriaminepentaacetate enhancement kinetics in the menisci of asymptomatic subjects: a first step towards a dedicated dGEMRIC (delayed gadolinium-enhanced MRI of cartilage)-like protocol for biochemical imaging of the menisci.
abstract: It was our aim to investigate the gadolinium diethylenetriaminepentaacetate (Gd-DTPA(2-) ) enhancement kinetics in the menisci of the knee joint over a prolonged period of time. Six asymptomatic volunteers (four men and two women; mean age, 25 ± 2.4 years) were enrolled. Sagittal, T(1) -weighted, spin-echo MR sequences of the right knee joint were obtained at 3 T. Imaging was performed before (baseline), 1 h after and in half-hour intervals up to 9 h after the intravenous administration of 0.2 mmol/kg of Gd-DTPA(2-) . To measure the rates of contrast enhancement relative to the baseline, regions of interest that covered the anterior and posterior horns of the medial and lateral meniscus were defined on each of two adjacent sections, and enhancement curves were constructed. An enhancement peak between 2.5 and 4.5 h after Gd-DTPA(2-) administration was observed, and analysis of variance also revealed no significant difference (p=0.94), in terms of enhancement, within this time interval. Pair-wise, post hoc testing also revealed no significant differences between 2.5 and 3, 3 and 3.5, 3.5 and 4, and 4 and 4.5 h post Gd-DTPA(2-) application. Our preliminary data therefore suggest that the time window suitable for a dGEMRIC (delayed gadolinium-enhanced MRI of cartilage)-like T(1) mapping of the menisci is relatively short, and lies between 2.5 and 4.5 h after Gd-DTPA(2-) injection.
authors: Department of Radiology, MR Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. marius.mayerhoefer@meduniwien.ac.at
authors: Marius E
authors: ME
authors: Mayerhoefer
authors: Tallal C
authors: TC
authors: Mamisch
authors: Georg
authors: G
authors: Riegler
authors: Goetz H
authors: GH
authors: Welsch
authors: Tomas
authors: T
authors: Dobrocky
authors: Michael
authors: M
authors: Weber
authors: Sebastian
authors: S
authors: Apprich
authors: Georg
authors: G
authors: Scheurecker
authors: Pavol
authors: P
authors: Szomolanyi
authors: Stefan
authors: S
authors: Puchner
authors: Siegfried
authors: S
authors: Trattnig
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods*; D007700:Kinetics; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008592:Menisci, Tibial / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D019786:Gadolinium DTPA