Purpose: To evaluate the feasibility of using a fat-suppressed 3D volumetric interpolated breath-hold examination (VIBE) sequence in magnetic resonance (MR) arthrography as a substitute for nonarthrographic multislice computed tomography (MSCT) in detecting glenoid bone lesions.
Materials and Methods:Fat-suppressed 3D VIBE MR arthrography and MSCT were performed in 56 patients (46 male, 10 female; age range, 14-51 years; mean age, 26 years). Based on the results of MSCT, the sensitivity and specificity of fat-suppressed 3D VIBE images for detection of bony Bankart lesion and glenoid bone loss were determined. Statistical significance of the percentages of glenoid bone loss between these two methods was calculated.Results: Bony Bankart lesions were noted in 23 (41.1%) of 56 glenohumeral joints, and glenoid bone loss was found in 40 (71.4%) of 56 patients at nonarthrographic MSCT. Compared with MSCT, the sensitivity and specificity of fatsuppressed 3D VIBE images in detecting bony Bankart lesions were 95.7%-100% and 93.9%-97.0%, respectively (kappa value ¼ 0.926), and those in predicting glenoid bone loss were 95.0% and 93.8%, respectively. For quantification of glenoid bone loss, there was a high correlation between fat-suppressed 3D VIBE and MSCT (r ¼ 0.921, P < 0.001).Conclusion: Fat-suppressed 3D VIBE MR arthrography is a promising substitute for MSCT as a reliable method for evaluating bony Bankart lesion and glenoid bone loss. GLENOID BONE LOSS and bony Bankart lesion are common injuries in patient who suffered from anterior shoulder dislocation or recurrent anterior dislocation (1-3). Identification and quantification of these glenoid bony abnormalities are important because such information is helpful to predict the likelihood of further dislocation and to determine the need for bone augmentation surgery in order to restore shoulder stability. Failure to address these bony lesions is one of the main risk factors for recurrent dislocation due to shoulder instability after Bankart repair (4).Nonarthrographic multislice computed tomography (MSCT) is presently considered the most accurate imaging technique for visualization and quantification of glenoid bone lesions (5), but it is not useful for detecting the labral lesions and soft tissue injuries. On the other hand, magnetic resonance (MR) arthrography has been proven the best imaging modality for evaluating shoulder instability, including labral tear and ligament injuries, with high sensitivity and specificity (6-8). However, it has not been validated for reliably detecting bony abnormalities of the glenoid (9). Therefore, in clinical practice, a patient with shoulder instability has to have both MR arthrography and CT examination for comprehensive evaluation before arthroscopic repair. The additional CT examination increases not only the total cost, but also the radiation hazard for the patient.In our clinical practice, a fat-suppressed 3D volumetric interpolated breath-hold examination (VIBE) sequence was added to the shoulder MR arthrography scanning pro...