Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of spine and spinal-cord lesions (excluding anomalies)

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is able to give an information about spinal lesions without bone artifacts. The authors have experienced the 72 spinal patients; in these cases we have evaluated the availabilities and problems of spinal MRI. Spinal MRI using the short-spin echo technique provided a good spatial resolution, while that using the long-spin echo technique gave an excellent tissue contrast. Moreover, the images using the inversion recovery technique were recommended for diagnosing lipomas and hematomas. On the other hand, some problems were pointed out on the basis of our experiences: the influence of the partial volume effect, the limitation of tissue characterization, and the poor discrimination of hard tissues. Other neuroradiological studies, however, helped to resolve these problems. (author)