REPEATABILITY OF A NOVEL 3D PULSE SEQUENCE FOR MAPPING T1P IN IVD

这个子项目是许多研究子项目中利用 资源由NIH/NCRR资助的中心拨款提供。子项目和 调查员(PI)可能从NIH的另一个来源获得了主要资金， 并因此可以在其他清晰的条目中表示。列出的机构是 该中心不一定是调查人员的机构。 退行性间盘疾病(DDD)是北方人背部相关残疾的最常见原因 美国成年人。DDD转化为近1000亿美元的卫生相关支出 单单是美国。常规的T1和T2成像技术对于观察晚期是有用的 椎间盘的结构形态改变，但对早期不敏感 生化变化。这些晚期的结构改变通常在临床上被识别为晚期DDD。 早期退行性改变发生在IVD髓核(NP)内，表现为大的聚集 蛋白多糖被分解。T1？驰豫时间增强了对相互作用的敏感性 在大量水分子和细胞外基质大分子之间，如蛋白多糖 在NP中。在这项研究中，我们使用T1的能力来检测体内早期的生化变化 NP使用新颖的3D脉冲序列来成像整个盘体积。最终，体积3D T1？分析可能为临床医生提供一种检测早期DDD的增强方法 传统的2D T1？成像技术。我们测量了T1图的重复性 松弛与一种新的3D磁共振脉冲序列。

This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. Degenerative disc disease (DDD) is the most common cause of back-related disability among North American adults. DDD translates into nearly 100 billion dollars in health-related expenditures in the United States alone. Conventional T1 and T2 imaging techniques are useful for observing late structural morphological changes to the inter-vertebral discs (IVDs) but are insensitive to early biochemical changes. These late structural changes are often clinically identified as late-stage DDD. Earlier degenerative change occurs within the IVD nucleus pulposus (NP), as large aggregating proteoglycans break down. The T1¿ relaxation time has enhanced sensitivity to the interaction between bulk water molecules and extracellular matrix macromolecules, such as the proteoglycans in the NP. In this study, we used the ability of T1¿ to detect early biochemical changes within the NP with a novel 3D pulse sequence to image the entire disc volume. Ultimately, volumetric 3D T1¿ analysis may provide clinicians with an enhanced method to detect early DDD over conventional 2D T1¿ imaging techniques. We measured the reproducibility of mapping T1¿ relaxation with a novel 3D MRI pulse sequence.