Claudia Fellner1, Cynthia Menzel1,2,
Christian Stroszczynski1, Thomas Finkenzeller1,3
1Institute of Radiology,
University Medical Center Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany; 2Institute
of Radiology & Neuroradiology, Krankenhaus Barmherzige Brder,
Regensburg, Germany; 3Institute of Diagnostic & Interventional
Radiology, Klinikum Weiden, Weiden, Germany
To evaluate the BLADE technique for sagittal T2-weighted imaging of the cervical spine for the diagnosis of spinal cord lesions, BLADE and TSE sequences were compared in 25 patients with 37 spinal cord lesions. Visual evaluation was done by 2 independent readers. BLADE was statistically superior (P<0.05) to TSE regarding image sharpness and delineation of the dura; the diagnostic reliability for the depiction of the spinal cord was also better with BLADE (P=0.056). Contrast of spinal cord lesions was very similar using BLADE and TSE. Therefore, BLADE can be used for routine sagittal T2-weighted imaging of the cervical spine.