Magic Angle Effects on T2, T2* & T1p Relaxation Times

Jiang Du¹, Eric Diaz¹, Won Bae¹, Sheronda Statum¹, Nikolaus Szeverenyi¹, Darryl DLima², Graeme Bydder¹, Christine Chung¹

The early stages of OA are associated with breakdown of collagen, decrease in proteoglycans (PG) and increase in water content (1). Recent research has focused on establishing correlations between quantitative MR parameters (T1, T2, T2*, T1ρ) and biochemical or biophysical properties of cartilage. Magic angle effects influence apparent T2 values of tissues with ordered collagen structure, such as articular cartilage, menisci, ligaments and tendons. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of sample orientation on T2/T2* and T1ρ values of the deep radial layer of human patellar cartilage and ligaments.