lian xin zhao1, guang bin wang1, Queenie Chan2, wei bo chen2
1Shandong Medical Imaging Research Institute, Shandong University, jinan, shandong, China; 2Philips Healthcare
The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the feasibility of diffusion-weighted (DW) magnetic resonance (MR) neurography of extremity nerves and evaluate the potential clinical applications. DW MR neurography images were displayed using a three-dimensional (3D) maximum intensity projection and evaluated in forty-seven healthy volunteers and eight patients. The results indicate that DW MR neurography is feasible for providing 3D visualization of major extremity nerves. This study suggests that the use of DW MR neurography, as complementary to conventional MR imaging, will improve depiction and evaluation of nerve anatomy and pathology, and their anatomic relationship with a comprehensive overview.