Measurement of bound and pore water T1relaxation times in cortical bone using three-dimensional ultrashort echo time cones sequences.
We present three-dimensional ultrashort echo time Cones (3D UTE Cones) techniques for quantification of total water T1( T1TW), bound water T1( T1BW), and pore water T1( T1PW) in vitro and in vivo using a 3 Tesla (T) scanner.



T1TW, T1BW, and T1PW were measured with three-dimensional (3D) Cones and adiabatic inversion recovery Cone (IR-Cone) sequences. Two-dimensional (2D) nonselective ultrashort echo time (UTE) techniques, including saturation recovery, variable repetition times (TRs), and inversion recovery (IR) preparation approaches were compared with 3D-Cones techniques on bovine cortical bone samples (n = 8). The 3D Cones sequences were used to measure T1TW, T1BW, and T1PW in the tibial midshaft of healthy volunteers (n = 8).



Comparable T1images were achieved for cortical bone between 3D Cones and 2D UTE techniques as well as those published in the literature. The 3D Cones sequences showed a mean T1TW of 208 ± 22 ms, a mean T1PW of 545 ± 28 ms, and a mean T1BW of 131 ± 12 ms for bovine cortical bone; and a mean T1TW of 246 ± 32 ms, a mean T1PW of 524 ± 46 ms, and a mean T1BW of 134 ± 11 ms for the tibial midshaft of healthy volunteers.



The 3D Cones sequences can be used for fast volumetric assessment of bound and pore water T1images in vitro and in vivo. Magn Reson Med 77:2136-2145, 2017. © 2016 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.
Department of Radiology, University of California, San Diego, California, USA.|Department of Orthopedics, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.
Jun
J
Chen
Department of Radiology, University of California, San Diego, California, USA.|Radiology Service, VA San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, California, USA.
Eric Y
EY
Chang
Applied Science Lab, GE Healthcare, San Diego, California, USA.
Michael
M
Carl
Department of Radiology, University of California, San Diego, California, USA.
Yajun
Y
Ma
Department of Radiology, University of California, San Diego, California, USA.
Hongda
H
Shao
Department of Radiology, University of California, San Diego, California, USA.
Bimin
B
Chen
Department of Orthopedics, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.
Zhihong
Z
Wu
Department of Radiology, University of California, San Diego, California, USA.
Jiang
J
Du
D065966:Absorption, Physicochemical; D000465:Algorithms; D000818:Animals; D001834:Body Water / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D002417:Cattle; D005269:Femur / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D016062:Porosity; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted; D014018:Tissue Distribution
Cones; T1 measurement; UTE; bound water; cortical bone; pore water