Skeletal development on fetal magnetic resonance imaging

Prenatal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is being increasingly used, in addition to standard ultrasound, for the diagnosis of congenital diseases beyond the central nervous system. Previous studies have demonstrated that MRI may be useful for the in utero visualization of spinal dysraphism and for...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Topics in magnetic resonance imaging 2011-06, Vol.22 (3), p.101-106
Main Authors: Nemec, Stefan Franz, Nemec, Ursula, Brugger, Peter C, Wadhawan, Isha, Prayer, Daniela
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Echo-Planar Imaging - methods
Echo-Planar Imaging - trends
Female
Fetal Development
Fetal Diseases - diagnosis
Fetus
Humans
Magnetic Resonance Imaging - methods
Magnetic Resonance Imaging - trends
Musculoskeletal Diseases - embryology
Musculoskeletal Diseases - pathology
Musculoskeletal System - embryology
Musculoskeletal System - pathology
Pregnancy
Prenatal Diagnosis - methods
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Summary:Prenatal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is being increasingly used, in addition to standard ultrasound, for the diagnosis of congenital diseases beyond the central nervous system. Previous studies have demonstrated that MRI may be useful for the in utero visualization of spinal dysraphism and for differentiating between isolated and complex skeletal disorders with associated abnormalities. More recently, attention has focused on the visualization of the human fetal skeleton for the delineation of normal and pathological development of skeletal structures. On 1.5 T, in particular, echoplanar imaging enables the delineation of various epimetaphyseal structures and morphometric measurements of the fetal long bones from 18 gestational weeks until term. This information gathered from prenatal MRI might be helpful in the diagnosis of focal bone abnormalities and generalized skeletal disorders, such as bone dysplasias. Further clinical research, along with the refinement of the newest techniques, will enable expansion of the preliminary findings and help in determining the impact of fetal magnetic resonance bone imaging in the routine clinical setting. This review summarizes the current data in the literature and the authors' clinical experience with the magnetic resonance visualization of the developing fetal skeleton and also comments on the potential future applications of this technique.
ISSN:0899-3459
1536-1004
DOI:10.1097/RMR.0b013e3182676153