Thesis (M.Sc.) - Cairo University - Faculty of Medicine - Department of Radio-diagnosis

From June 2017 to August 2018, this prospective study was done using T2 mapping to visualize the articular cartilage of the knee on 3.0T MR Scanner using special software to evaluate the efficiency of T2 mapping to detect cartilage lesions in patients representing with knee pain and not diagnosed clinically to have osteoarthritis. We performed a prospective study that included 30 patients. The study included 20/30 (66%) cases presented by knee pain and 10/30 (33%) cases control with no knee pain. As each patient had a single MRI examination including conventional MR routine protocol and added a single complementary T2 mapping, 30 MRI examinations and 30 corresponding complementary T2 mapping were analyzed. We found significant differences in T2 mapping detection of degree of degeneration between the two study groups according to ICRS degeneration grades were seen in the weight baring regions (central medial femoral and central medial tibial regions). There were insignificant differences in T2 mapping ability to detect degree of cartilage degeneration between the two study groups according to ICRS degeneration grades in the non-weight baring regions of the knee joint. In conclusion this study confirms that addition of T2 maps to standard views improved accuracy in diagnosing early cartilage degeneration in knee pain and it provides a useful addition to standard MR imaging when cartilage degeneration is suspected specially among the young population

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