Correlation between T2* (T2 star) relaxation time and cervical intervertebral disc degeneration

Abstract

Purpose:To demonstrate the potential benefits of T2∗ relaxation time of intervertebral discs (IVDs) regarding the detection and grading of degenerative disc disease using 3.0-T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in a clinical setting.Materials and Methods:Cervical sagittal T2-weighted, T2∗ relaxation MRI was performed at 3.0-T in 61 subjects, covering discs C2–3 to C6–7. All discs were morphologically assessed based on the Pfirrmann grade, and regions of interests (ROIs) were drawn over the T2∗ mapping. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was performed among grades to determine the cut-off values.Results:Cervical intervertebral discs (IVDs) of patients were commonly determined to be at Pfirrmann grades III to V. The nucleus pulposus (NP) values did not differ significantly between sexes at the same anatomic level (P > 0.05). In the NP, the T2∗ values tended to decrease with increasing grade (P < 0.000), and a significant difference was found in the T2 values between grades I to V (P < 0.05). T2∗ values based on disc degeneration level classification were as follows: grade I (>30 milliseconds), grade II (24.55–29.99 milliseconds), grade III (21.65–24.54 milliseconds), grade IV (18.35–21.64 milliseconds), and grade V (<18.34 milliseconds).Conclusion:Our standardized method of region-specific quantitative T2∗ relaxation time evaluation seems capable of characterizing different degrees of disc degeneration quantitatively. The T2∗ values obtained in these cervical IVDs may serve as baseline values for future T2∗ measurements in both healthy and degenerated cervical discs.

T2* Mapping of the Adult Intervertebral Lumbar Disc: Normative Data and Analysis of Diurnal Effects

“…In contrast, we discovered discrepancies between the zones of the discs, which was somewhat expected, and between the individual segments with a trend of increasing T2* values in IVDs of the lower lumbar spine that mainly affected the nucleus. These findings are in keeping with previous studies and are likely reflecting physiological circumstances including disc structure and loading . Future studies including healthy subjects and patients with specific diseases aiming to use T2* mapping clinically may be able to take this normative data of T2* pattern into account.…”

“…The mean T2* values in normal appearing discs (Pfirrmann grade I) were 79.16 ± 10.22 ms in the NP, 30.97 ± 7.51 ms in the anterior AF and 34.15 ± 5.82 ms in the posterior AF. T2* values in a total of 305 cervical IVDs of 61 subjects with neck pain were examined by Huang et al Notably, their T2* values of the NP in 33 discs with Pfirrmann grade I (T2* mean = 33.17 ± 7.60 ms) were remarkably lower compared to those assessed in the lumbar spine. Indeed, it must be noted that these T2* values were obtained in a different part of the spine.…”

“…Various studies have attempted to investigate the qualitative and quantitative properties of the IVD via biochemically sensitive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) that includes GagCEST (glycosaminoglycan chemical exchange saturation transfer), dGEMRIC (delayed gadolinium‐enhanced MRI), T1rho, sodium and T2 mapping . The present study uses the T2* mapping technique, a method that is comparable to T2 mapping MRI, which has been proven feasible on human and animal samples, in vitro and in vivo in the lumbar and cervical spine . T2* mapping is implementable on all routine 1.5 and 3 T MRI systems, requires a relatively short acquisition time and allows for high image‐resolution and three‐dimensional (3D) imaging …”

“…Considering previous studies, we expected a topographical T2* profile of the disc with higher values in the nucleus, compared to the annulus fibrosus (AF), and segmental differences of the discs in physiologically different strained spinal regions. In addition, a sufficient number of T2* measurements of the lumbar spine are unavailable for young, healthy, adult subjects under the auspices of what one would call “normative data” as the previous studies mainly examined patients with vertebral problems or cadaveric human or animal spines . The present study aimed to identify potential diurnal effects and to generate T2* mapping baseline values in a sufficient cohort of young healthy, adult subject, aiming to establish possible benchmark (normative data) for future studies and evaluations taking zonal and segmental differences into account.…”

Quantitative evaluation of lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration by axial T2* mapping

“…[ 24 ] And other scholars have held a certain correlation between the T2∗ and T2 values. [ 25 , 26 ] The T1rho imaging was also studied by some scholars. [ 27 ] But it has some advantages and disadvantages.…”