Abstract
The options for fat suppression at 3-T MR imaging with respect to their physics basis, pulse-sequence design, clinical strengths and limitations, and vendor-specific implementations and nomenclature are discussed.
Fat suppression is an important technique in musculoskeletal imaging to improve the visibility of bone-marrow lesions; evaluate fat in soft-tissue masses; optimize the contrast-to-noise ratio in magnetic resonance (MR) arthrography; better define lesions after administration of contrast material; and avoid chemical shift artifacts, primarily at 3-T MR imaging. High-field-strength (eg, 3-T) MR imaging has specific technical characteristics compared with lower-field-strength MR imaging that influence the use and outcome of various fat-suppression techniques. The most commonly used fat-suppression techniques for musculoskeletal 3-T MR imaging include chemical shift (spectral) selective (CHESS) fat saturation, inversion recovery pulse sequences (eg, short inversion time inversion recovery [STIR]), hybrid pulse sequences with spectral and inversion-recovery (eg, spectral adiabatic inversion recovery and spectral attenuated inversion recovery [SPAIR]), spatial-spectral pulse sequences (ie, water excitation), and the Dixon techniques. Understanding the different fat-suppression options allows radiologists to adopt the most appropriate technique for their clinical practice.
©RSNA, 2014
References
- 1. . Fat suppression in MR imaging: techniques and pitfalls. RadioGraphics 1999;19(2):373–382. Link, Google Scholar
- 2. . Fat and water magnetic resonance imaging. J Magn Reson Imaging 2010;31(1):4–18. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 3. . Iterative decomposition of water and fat with echo asymmetry and least-squares estimation (IDEAL) of the wrist and finger at 3T: comparison with chemical shift selective fat suppression images. J Magn Reson Imaging 2013;37(3):733–738. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 4. . Musculoskeletal MRI at 3.0 T: initial clinical experience. AJR Am J Roentgenol 2004;183(5): 1479–1486. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 5. . 3.0 Tesla imaging of the musculoskeletal system. J Magn Reson Imaging 2007;25(2):245–261. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 6. . Techniques of Fat Suppression. http://cds.ismrm.org/protected/09MProceedings/files/Tues%20C36_01%20Cameron.pdf. Accessed April 29, 2013. Google Scholar
- 7. . Musculoskeletal MR imaging at 4 T and at 1.5 T: comparison of relaxation times and image contrast. Radiology 1995;196(2):551–555. Link, Google Scholar
- 8. . Musculoskeletal MRI at 3.0 T: relaxation times and image contrast. AJR Am J Roentgenol 2004;183(2):343–351. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 9. . The short TI inversion recovery sequence: an approach to MR imaging of the abdomen. Magn Reson Imaging 1985;3(3):251–254. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 10. . Clinical use of the partial saturation and saturation recovery sequences in MR imaging. J Comput Assist Tomogr 1985;9(6): 1020–1032. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 11. . 1H NMR chemical shift selective (CHESS) imaging. Phys Med Biol 1985;30(4):341–344. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 12. . Multisection fat-water imaging with chemical shift selective presaturation. Radiology 1987;164(2):539–541. Link, Google Scholar
- 13. . Spectral radiofrequency pulses. In: Handbook of MRI pulse sequences. Burlington, Mass: Elsevier, 2004; 115–124. Crossref, Google Scholar
- 14. . Fast spin echo STIR imaging. J Comput Assist Tomogr 1994;18(2):209–213. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 15. . STIR MR imaging of the orbit. AJR Am J Roentgenol 1988;151(5): 1025–1030. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 16. . Basic pulse sequences. In: Handbook of MRI pulse sequences. Burlington, Mass: Elsevier, 2004; 622–624. Crossref, Google Scholar
- 17. . Nonspecificity of short inversion time inversion recovery (STIR) as a technique of fat suppression: pitfalls in image interpretation. AJR Am J Roentgenol 1996;166(3): 523–526. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 18. . Adiabatic radiofrequency pulses. In: Handbook of MRI pulse sequences. Burlington, Mass: Elsevier, 2004; 190–198. Crossref, Google Scholar
- 19. . Evaluation of optimized inversion-recovery fat-suppression techniques for T2-weighted abdominal MR imaging. J Magn Reson Imaging 2008;27(6):1448–1454. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 20. . MR neurography: past, present, and future. AJR Am J Roentgenol 2011;197(3):583–591. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 21. . 3 Tesla MR neurography: technique, interpretation, and pitfalls. Skeletal Radiol 2011;40(10):1249–1260. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 22. . High-resolution 3-T MR neurography of femoral neuropathy. AJR Am J Roentgenol 2012;198(1):3–10. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 23. . A chemical shift selective inversion recovery sequence for fat-suppressed MRI: theory and experimental validation. Magn Reson Imaging 1993;11(3): 341–355. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 24. . Simultaneous spatial and spectral selective excitation. Magn Reson Med 1990;15(2):287–304. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 25. . Spatial radiofrequency pulses. In: Handbook of MRI pulse sequences. Burlington, Mass: Elsevier, 2004; 153–163. Crossref, Google Scholar
- 26. . Three-dimensional double-echo steady-state (3D-DESS) magnetic resonance imaging of the knee: establishment of flip angles for evaluation of cartilage at 1.5 T and 3.0 T. Acta Radiol 2012;53(7):790–794. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 27. . Water excitation as an alternative to fat saturation in MR imaging: preliminary results in musculoskeletal imaging. Radiology 2002;224(3):657–663. Link, Google Scholar
- 28. . Simple proton spectroscopic imaging. Radiology 1984;153(1):189–194. Link, Google Scholar
- 29. . Effect of echo time pair selection on quantitative analysis for adrenal tumor characterization with in-phase and opposed-phase MR imaging: initial experience. Radiology 2008;248(1):140–147. Link, Google Scholar
- 30. . Three-point Dixon technique for true water/fat decomposition with B0 inhomogeneity correction. Magn Reson Med 1991;18(2):371–383. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 31. . Multipoint Dixon technique for water and fat proton and susceptibility imaging. J Magn Reson Imaging 1991;1(5):521–530. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 32. . Multicoil Dixon chemical species separation with an iterative least-squares estimation method. Magn Reson Med 2004; 51(1):35–45. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 33. . Field map estimation with a region growing scheme for iterative 3-point water-fat decomposition. Magn Reson Med 2005;54(4):1032–1039. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 34. . Fast three-point Dixon MR imaging using low-resolution images for phase correction: a comparison with chemical shift selective fat suppression for pediatric musculoskeletal imaging. AJR Am J Roentgenol 2001;177(5):1019–1023. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 35. . T2-weighted spine imaging with a fast three-point Dixon technique: comparison with chemical shift selective fat suppression. J Magn Reson Imaging 2004;20(6):1025–1029. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 36. . ISMRM workshop on fat-water separation: insights, applications and progress in MRI. Magn Reson Med 2012; 68(2):378–388. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 37. : sensitivity encoding for fast MRI. Magn Reson Med 1999;42(5):952–962. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 38. . Simultaneous acquisition of spatial harmonics (SMASH): fast imaging with radiofrequency coil arrays. Magn Reson Med 1997;38(4):591–603. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 39. . Comparison of localized proton NMR signals of skeletal muscle and fat tissue in vivo: two lipid compartments in muscle tissue. Magn Reson Med 1993;29(2):158–167. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 40. . In vivo determination of intra-myocellular lipids in human muscle by means of localized 1H-MR-spectroscopy. Magn Reson Med 1997;37(4):484–493. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 41. . Bulk magnetic susceptibility effects on the assessment of intra- and extramyocellular lipids in vivo. Magn Reson Med 2002;47(3):607–610. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 42. . Intramyocellular lipid concentrations are correlated with insulin sensitivity in humans: a 1H NMR spectroscopy study. Diabetologia 1999;42(1):113–116. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 43. . Association of increased intramyocellular lipid content with insulin resistance in lean nondiabetic offspring of type 2 diabetic subjects. Diabetes 1999;48(5):1113–1119. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 44. . The MR characterization of the composition of the hematopoietic bone marrow: the findings in generalized neoplasms and the monitoring of therapy [in German]. Radiologe 2000;40(8):700–709. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 45. . Magnetic resonance imaging reveals a markedly inhomogeneous distribution of marrow cellularity in a patient with myelodysplasia. Ann Hematol 1995;71(3):143–146. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 46. . Lipid selective MR imaging and localized 1H spectroscopy of bone marrow during therapy of leukemia. Anticancer Res 1996;16(3B):1545–1551. Medline, Google Scholar
- 47. . Iterative decomposition of water and fat with echo asymmetry and least-squares estimation (IDEAL): application with fast spin-echo imaging. Magn Reson Med 2005;54(3):636–644. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 48. . T1- and T2-weighted fast spin-echo imaging of the brachial plexus and cervical spine with IDEAL water-fat separation. J Magn Reson Imaging 2006;24(4): 825–832. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 49. . Articular cartilage of the knee: rapid three-dimensional MR imaging at 3.0 T with IDEAL balanced steady-state free precession—initial experience. Radiology 2006;240(2): 546–551. Link, Google Scholar
- 50. . IDEAL imaging of the musculoskeletal system: robust water fat separation for uniform fat suppression, marrow evaluation, and cartilage imaging. AJR Am J Roentgenol 2007;189(5):W284–W291. Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar
- 51. . 3.0-T evaluation of knee cartilage by using three-dimensional IDEAL GRASS imaging: comparison with fast spin-echo imaging. Radiology 2010;255(1):117–127. Link, Google Scholar
- 52. . MR arthrography of the hip: comparison of IDEAL-SPGR volume sequence to standard MR sequences in the detection and grading of cartilage lesions. Radiology 2011;261(3):863–871. Link, Google Scholar
Article History
Received: June 13 2013Revision requested: July 13 2013
Revision received: Aug 20 2013
Accepted: Aug 29 2013
Published online: Jan 2014
Published in print: Jan 2014