HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Figures Only Full Text Full Text (PDF) VIDEOS Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Google Scholar Articles by Fritz, J. Articles by Pereira, P. L. PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Fritz, J. Articles by Pereira, P. L. Social Bookmarking                      What's this? Hotlight (NEW!) What's Hotlight?

MRI-Guided Injection Procedures of the Temporomandibular Joints in Children and Adults: Technique, Accuracy, and Safety

¹ Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Eberhard-Karls-University Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
² Present address: Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 600 N Wolfe St., Baltimore, MD 21287.
³ Department of Hematology, Oncology and General Pediatrics, University Children's Hospital, Eberhard-Karls-University Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
⁴ Department of Radiology, Minimally Invasive Therapies and Nuclearmedicine, SLK-Kliniken Heilbronn, Heilbronn, Germany.

OBJECTIVE. The purpose of our study was to test the hypothesis that real-time MRI-guided, selective injection procedures of the temporomandibular joints are feasible, accurate, and safe when performed on a clinical open-bore 1.5-T MR system.

MATERIALS AND METHODS. A retrospective analysis of 67 injection procedures of the temporomandibular joints (55% [37/67] were therapeutic injections, 27% [18/67] were diagnostic injections, and 18% [12/67] were arthrocentesis procedures), performed in 31 patients (58% [18/31] female, 42% [13/31] male; mean age, 14 years; age range, 3–34 years), was made. Seven of 38 (18%) subjects had two temporally separate procedures. Determinations of skin entry points, puncture, and injection were performed under real-time MRI. Data were assessed for rate of successful injections, quantitative and qualitative image quality, time requirements, and occurrence of complications.

RESULTS. Drug delivery was successful in all procedures. The quality of real-time FLASH 2D MR images was sufficient in all cases. Real-time MRI proved to be helpful to achieve high rates of intraarticular injections. Contrast-to-noise ratios were sufficiently high for good delineation of relevant structures. Average length of time was 25 minutes (range, 16–53 minutes). No major complications occurred.

CONCLUSION. We accept the hypothesis that real-time MRI-guided selective injection procedures of the temporomandibular joints are feasible, accurate, and safe when performed on a clinical open-bore 1.5-T MR system.

Keywords: arthrocentesis • injection • interventional MRI • MRI guidance • temporomandibular joint

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?