The influences of different spatial resolutions on the characteristics of T2 relaxation times in articular cartilage: A coarse-graining study of the microscopic magnetic resonance imaging data.
Microscopic magnetic resonance imaging (µMRI) T2 data from canine cartilage at different tibial locations were analyzed to investigate the influences of spatial resolution and pixel position on the T2 sensitivity to osteoarthritis (OA). Five experimental factors were investigated: inaccurate pixel position, different pixel resolutions, different specimen orientations in the magnetic field, topographical variations over the tibial surface, and different OA stages. A number of significant trends were identified in this analysis, which shows the subtle but substantial influences to our abilities of detecting OA due to T2 changes. In particular, any deviation in locating the cartilage pixels may result in erratic values near the cartilage surface. Significant differences were found in T2 values between nearly any two comparison-groups under all resolutions both in the meniscus-covered and -uncovered areas, which were also showed interaction between the OA degradation stages. This multiresolution project should help to improve the detection sensitivities of MRI toward cartilage degeneration. Microsc. Res. Tech. 79:754-765, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Department of Radiology, RenJi Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.|Department of Physics and Center for Biomedical Research, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan.
Zhiguo
Z
Zhuang
Department of Physics and Center for Biomedical Research, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan.
Ji Hyun
JH
Lee
Department of Physics and Center for Biomedical Research, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan.
Farid
F
Badar
Department of Radiology, RenJi Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
Jianrong
J
Xu
Department of Physics and Center for Biomedical Research, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan.
Yang
Y
Xia
D000818:Animals; D002358:Cartilage, Articular / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D004285:Dogs; D005260:Female; D006614:Hindlimb / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male
MRI; T2; cartilage; image analysis; spatial resolution