• Masako Kataoka, Aki Kido, Takashi Koyama, Hiroyoshi Isoda, Shigeaki Umeoka, Ken Tamai, Yuji Nakamoto, Yoji Maetani, Nobuko Morisawa, Tsuneo Saga, and Kaori Togashi.
• Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.
• J Magn Reson Imaging. 2007 Mar 1; 25 (3): 527-34.

PurposeTo evaluate the feasibility of MRI of the female pelvis using high-resolution T2-weighted imaging (T2WI) and the half-Fourier acquisition single-shot turbo spin-echo (HASTE) technique at 3 Tesla (T) compared to 1.5T, while focusing on the uterine body and cervical anatomy.Materials And MethodsA total of 19 healthy women underwent pelvic MR scans on 3T and 1.5T scanners. Axial and sagittal T2W (voxel size of 0.6 x 0.8 x 2 mm) and sagittal HASTE images were obtained. The images were evaluated qualitatively for overall image quality, contrast in the uterine zonal appearance and cervical structure, image inhomogeneity, and artifacts. A quantitative evaluation was performed regarding zonal contrast and image inhomogeneity.ResultsOn T2WI, the image contrast in the uterine cervix and vagina were significantly higher at 3T than at 1.5T, although there was no significant difference in the overall image quality or contrast in the uterine zonal appearance. Image inhomogeneity was more prominent at 3T, and motion artifact was more severe at 1.5T.ConclusionOur results suggest that MRI of the female pelvis at 3T may potentially provide excellent images of the uterine cervix on high-resolution T2WI. New techniques to reduce inhomogeneity are thus called for.

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