Faculty Collaboration Database

High-resolution MR imaging of the normal rotator cuff. AJR Am J Roentgenol 1987 Mar;148(3):559-64

Date

03/01/1987

Pubmed ID

3492885

DOI

10.2214/ajr.148.3.559

Scopus ID

2-s2.0-0023153499 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site)   36 Citations

Abstract

The shoulders of six normal volunteers were imaged with high-resolution MR in the axial, sagittal, and coronal planes. An angled pair of counter-rotating current loop-gap resonators designed specifically for the shoulder was used as a local coil. All images were compared with corresponding cryomicrotome sections from cadaver shoulders. The rotator cuff was analyzed in detail. It appeared as a complex, heterogeneous band to tissue superficial to the humeral head. The areas of low signal intensity corresponded to the central tendons of the four rotator cuff muscles. These tendons could be distinguished from each other as well as from the intervening components of the cuff, which have a moderate intensity. We concluded that MR is capable of imaging the normal rotator cuff and of separating the various components. This may allow for improved precision in the diagnosis of rotator cuff disorders.

Author List

Middleton WD, Kneeland JB, Carrera GF, Cates JD, Kellman GM, Campagna NG, Jesmanowicz A, Froncisz W, Hyde JS

MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold

Adult
Female
Humans
Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy
Male
Muscles
Shoulder
Tendons