Time-saving opportunities in knee osteoarthritis: T2 mapping and structural imaging of the knee using a single 5-min MRI scan

OBJECTIVES: measurements of cartilage and meniscus, and structural knee osteoarthritis (OA) assessment, in a clinical OA population, using radiographic knee OA as reference standard. METHODS: and MOAKS were assessed with correlation analyses for ordinal variables. RESULTS: and between radiographic OA and MOAKS in all ROIs (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: and structural assessment of cartilage and meniscus, using a single 5-min qDESS scan, can distinguish between different grades of radiographic OA, demonstrating the potential of qDESS as an efficient tool for OA imaging. KEY POINTS: values of cartilage and meniscus as well as structural assessment of the knee with a single 5-min quantitative double-echo steady-state (qDESS) scan can distinguish between different grades of knee osteoarthritis (OA). • Quantitative and structural qDESS-based measurements correlate significantly with the reference standard, radiographic degree of OA, for all cartilage and meniscus regions. • By providing quantitative measurements and diagnostic image quality in one rapid MRI scan, qDESS has great potential for application in large-scale clinical trials in knee OA.