Towards High Resolution Large Field-of-View Bone MRI

Motivation: Long-T2 suppressed MRI shows promise as an alternative to CT for directly imaging bone, teeth and hard tissues. However, achieving the correct contrast over a large FOV, with both sufficient resolution and SNR to distinguish small details is technically challenging in multiple ways. Goal(s): To obtain high resolution long-T2 suppressed ZTE imaging over a large FOV using clinical hardware. Approach: We carefully optimized sequence parameters including choice of inversion pulse within system constraints. Results: We obtained a high-quality image of the skull and upper vertebrae in a volunteer. Impact: Using MRI for bone imaging would remove the associated risks from the ionizing radiation required for CT. The developments shown here are a step towards a robust, high resolution MRI bone scan over a large FOV.