Abstract #0684

Assessment of Porcine Intervertebral Disc Specimen pH Via Chemical Exchange Saturation Transfer (CEST) MRI

Gerd Melkus¹, Michelle Grabau¹, Dimitrios C. Karampinos,¹², Sharmila Majumdar¹

¹Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States; ²Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Bavaria, Germany

Studies have linked low pH and loss of glycoaminoglycan in the intervertebral disc of patients with discogenic back pain. Therefore MRI methods to measure pH in intervertebral discs would be valuable in research and clinical settings. The present study performed on phantoms and porcine discs investigates if gagCEST shows pH dependence and if this effect could be used to detect pH changes in the discs. Further, the DIACEST agent Iopromide is injected into the disc specimens to investigate if CEST MRI can be used to detect intervertebral disc pH using this molecule.