Robert Adam Horch1,2, Daniel Frank Gochberg2,3,
Jeffry S. Nyman4,5, Mark D. Does1,2
1Biomedical Engineering,
Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States; 2Vanderbilt
University Institute of Imaging Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville,
TN, United States; 3Radiology and Radiological Sciences,
Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States; 4VA Tennessee
Valley Healthcare System; 5Department of Orthopaedics &
Rehabilitation, Vanderbilt University
Modern ultrashort-echo time imaging has enabled human cortical bone MRI in a clinical setting. However, the cortical bone NMR signal contains contributions from both collagen-bound and pore space water, which vary across donors in opposing amounts and thereby degrade the diagnostic utility of the net bone signal. Herein, we present schemes for selectively imaging either bound or pore water, utilizing their differing T1 and T2 characteristics to generate diagnostically useful image contrast. An adiabatic full passage inversion-recovery sequence is shown to have bound water selectivity, and a short-TE fast spin echo sequence is shown to have pore water selectivity.