Fiber Tracking of Dipolar Directions in the Meniscus

Nikolaus M. Szeverenyi¹, Graeme M. Bydder¹

This study examines a method to extract and use dipolar information to characterize an ex-vivo meniscus sample. A goat meniscus was embedded in a spherical epoxy ball and the MR signal intensity examined as a function of orientation to a 3T static field. Unaveraged dipolar interactions caused dramatic signal variations in sub-structures. After correcting for coil sensitivity and co-registering all images, a principle dipolar direction was extracted for each voxel. This directional data could be analyzed and viewed as a direction map, similar to DTI brain data. The intensity fluctuations provided a FA map. Fiber tracks were generated.