MRI of muscle strain injuries

J Comput Assist Tomogr. 1994 May-Jun;18(3):454-60. doi: 10.1097/00004728-199405000-00021.

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of our study was to evaluate (a) the characteristics of muscle strain injuries on MRI and (b) the potential of a frequency-selective fat suppression technique for diagnosing such injuries.

Materials and methods: Muscle strain injuries in seven athletes were examined by MRI. Spin echo sequences were obtained with and without fat suppression sequences. The absolute values of the contrast-to-noise (C/N) ratios for lesion versus muscle or fat were then compared for both types of images.

Results: We obtained two types of characteristic findings for muscle strain. Lesions of the fascia and adjacent muscles showed a characteristic spray-like or fan-like appearance, extending longitudinally from a shared tendon to the muscle belly in five athletes. This finding was better displayed on coronal images. In contrast, lesions inside a muscle showed a diffuse and inhomogeneous appearance in two athletes. The absolute C/N ratios for lesion versus fat and lesion versus muscle were not significantly different for images with and without fat suppression according to the sign test. However, fat-suppressed images revealed subtle abnormalities that were not seen on conventional images.

Conclusion: Magnetic resonance can provide detailed information on muscle strain injuries, especially when coronal fat-suppressed images are obtained.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Athletic Injuries / diagnosis*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging*
  • Male
  • Muscles / injuries*
  • Muscles / pathology
  • Sprains and Strains / diagnosis*