Synopsis

MRI has become the hallmark for imaging of the musculoskeletal system due to its ability to image MSK tissues at high resolutions with multiple contrasts. Tailoring MRI sequences allows for optimization of anatomy or pathology of interest, removal of fat, imaging at higher resolutions or with more signal to noise, among other advantages. In this educational talk, we will discuss the MRI image contrast mechanisms, methods for suppression of fat signal, common MSK MRI pulse sequences and image considerations. Further, we will briefly cover novel MSK imaging approaches including accelerated imaging and reconstruction, non-cartesian MRI, bilateral scanning, and contrast/non-contrast imaging.