Premium
Three‐parameter shear wave inversion in MR elastography of incompressible transverse isotropic media: Application to in vivo lower leg muscles
Author(s) -
Guo Jing,
Hirsch Sebastian,
Scheel Michael,
Braun Jürgen,
Sack Ingolf
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
magnetic resonance in medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.696
H-Index - 225
eISSN - 1522-2594
pISSN - 0740-3194
DOI - 10.1002/mrm.25740
Subject(s) - elastography , magnetic resonance elastography , anisotropy , transverse isotropy , isotropy , viscoelasticity , elasticity (physics) , compressibility , nuclear magnetic resonance , shear modulus , materials science , shear (geology) , physics , mechanics , biomedical engineering , ultrasound , composite material , acoustics , medicine , optics
Purpose To develop and demonstrate MR elastography (MRE) for the measurement of three independent viscoelastic constants of skeletal muscle according to the theory of linear elasticity of incompressible materials with transverse isotropy (TI). Methods Three‐dimensional multifrequency MRE was applied to soleus, gastrocnemius, and tibialis anterior muscles in 10 healthy volunteers. The rotational wave fields were solved for complex‐valued viscoelastic parameters μ 12 , μ 13 , and E 3 corresponding to two shear moduli (within the planes of isotropy and symmetry of TI materials) and Young's modulus (along the principal fiber axis). Results Anisotropy was represented by the inequality μ 12 < μ 13 < 1/3 E 3 considering storage and loss properties of the soleus and gastrocnemius muscles, whereas storage shear moduli of tibialis were indistinguishable. Storage moduli were: 1.06 ± 0.12, 1.33 ± 0.10, 6.92 ± 0.95 kPa (soleus); 0.90 ± 0.11, 1.30 ± 0.15, 8.22 ± 1.37 kPa (gastrocnemius); 1.26 ± 0.16, 1.27 ± 0.11, 9.29 ± 1.42 kPa (tibialis), for μ 12 , μ 13 , and E 3 , respectively. The muscles were different in their μ 12 and E 3 values, whereas μ 13 was less sensitive to the muscle type. Leg differences were observed in the soleus and gastrocnemius muscles. Conclusion Recovery of the full elasticity tensor in incompressible TI materials is feasible by three‐dimensional inversion of the time‐harmonic shear wave equation. The method is potentially useful for the clinical evaluation of skeletal muscle anisotropy. Magn Reson Med 75:1537–1545, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.