• Suchandrima Banerjee, Eric T Han, Roland Krug, David C Newitt, and Sharmila Majumdar.
• Department of Radiology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94107, USA.
• J Magn Reson Imaging. 2005 Jun 1; 21 (6): 818-25.

PurposeTo evaluate the potential of fully-balanced steady-state free-precession (SSFP) sequences in in vivo high-resolution (HR) MRI of trabecular bone at field strengths of 1.5 and 3 T by simulation and experimental methods.Materials And MethodsUsing simulation studies, refocused SSFP acquisition was optimized for our imaging purposes with a focus on signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and SNR efficiency. The signal behavior in trabecular bone was estimated using a magnetostatic model of the trabecular bone and marrow. Eight normal volunteers were imaged at the proximal femur, calcaneus, and the distal tibia on a GE Signa scanner at 1.5 and at 3 T with an optimized single-acquisition SSFP sequence (three-dimensional FIESTA) and an optimized multiple-acquisition SSFP sequence (three-dimensional FIESTA-c). Images were also acquired with a fast gradient echo (FGRE) sequence for evaluation of the SNR performance of SSFP methods.ResultsRefocused SSFP images outperformed FGRE acquisitions in both SNR and SNR efficiency at both field strengths. At 3 T, susceptibility effects were visible in FIESTA and FGRE images and much reduced in FIESTA-c images. The magnitude of SNR boost at 3 T was closely predicted by simulations.ConclusionSingle-acquisition SSFP (at 1.5 T) and multiple-acquisition SSFP (at 3 T) hold great potential for HR-MRI of trabecular bone.Copyright (c) 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

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