Nikolaus M. Szeverenyi1,
Paul A. DiCamillo1, Graeme M. Bydder2
1Radiology,
University of California, San Diego, San Diego, CA, United States; 2Radiology,
University of California San Diego, San Diego, CA, United States
Residual dipolar effects influence T2 relaxation times and are responsible for the magic angle effects known in MR imaging. In this study we manipulated the orientation of a human Achilles specimen in an 11.7 T animal system producing high contrast images, which at certain orientations revealed fine sub-structures that could not otherwise be observed. A 17-fold change in signal intensity was obtained for the most fibrous structures. Coefficient of variation images were computed from co-registered datasets (DAFI approach) providing a new tissue parameter and a novel technique for visualizing fiber content.