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Abbreviations
MRI
Common Reporting Abbreviations
| Abbreviation | Full Form | Key Points / Usage |
|---|---|---|
| Rt / Lt | Right / Left | Side specification. |
| B/L | Bilateral | Both sides involved. |
| AP | Anteroposterior | Orientation or measurement. |
| SI | Superior-Inferior | Directional term. |
| TR | Repetition Time | Basic sequence parameter. |
| TE | Echo Time | Basic sequence parameter. |
| TI | Inversion Time | Time from inversion pulse to acquisition. |
| FOV | Field of View | Area covered in scan. |
| SNR | Signal-to-Noise Ratio | Image quality indicator. |
| CNR | Contrast-to-Noise Ratio | Contrast quality indicator. |
Contrast & Enhancement
| Abbreviation | Full Form | Key Points / Usage |
|---|---|---|
| CE | Contrast-Enhanced | Indicates imaging after IV contrast. |
| Gd | Gadolinium | Paramagnetic MRI contrast agent. |
| CEMRI | Contrast-Enhanced MRI | Full MRI exam with IV gadolinium. |
| TOF | Time of Flight | Non-contrast MR angiography method. |
| CE-MRA | Contrast-Enhanced Magnetic Resonance Angiography | Uses gadolinium to visualize vessels. |
| DCE | Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced | Multiple phases post-contrast; used in tumor perfusion and breast MRI. |
| DSC | Dynamic Susceptibility Contrast | Perfusion imaging, often in brain tumors and stroke. |
Functional & Advanced MRI
| Abbreviation | Full Form | Key Points / Usage |
|---|---|---|
| fMRI | Functional MRI | Maps brain activity using BOLD signal. |
| BOLD | Blood-Oxygen-Level Dependent | Signal change due to blood oxygenation; basis of fMRI. |
| MRCP | Magnetic Resonance Cholangiopancreatography | Non-invasive imaging of biliary and pancreatic ducts. |
| MRU | Magnetic Resonance Urography | Imaging urinary tract with T2 and contrast-enhanced sequences. |
| MRS | MR Spectroscopy | Evaluates tissue metabolites. |
| DTI | Diffusion Tensor Imaging | Maps white matter tracts. |
| IVIM | Intravoxel Incoherent Motion | Separates diffusion and perfusion effects in DWI. |
| ASL | Arterial Spin Labeling | Non-contrast cerebral perfusion method. |
| MTI | Magnetization Transfer Imaging | Improves contrast between tissues with different macromolecular content. |
General MRI Sequences
| Abbreviation | Full Form | Key Points / Usage |
|---|---|---|
| T1W | T1-weighted | Good for anatomy, fat appears bright, fluid dark. Useful for post-contrast imaging. |
| T2W | T2-weighted | Highlights fluid as bright, good for edema, inflammation, cysts. |
| PD | Proton Density | Balances T1 and T2 effects; used in MSK imaging to assess cartilage and ligaments. |
| STIR | Short Tau Inversion Recovery | Fat suppression + T2-weighted contrast; very sensitive for edema and bone marrow lesions. |
| FLAIR | Fluid-Attenuated Inversion Recovery | Suppresses free fluid signal (CSF), useful in brain lesion detection (e.g., MS plaques). |
| DWI | Diffusion-Weighted Imaging | Detects restricted diffusion; useful in stroke, abscess, tumor cellularity. |
| ADC | Apparent Diffusion Coefficient | Quantitative diffusion map; low in acute infarct, high in vasogenic edema. |
| SWI | Susceptibility-Weighted Imaging | Very sensitive to blood products, calcifications, microbleeds. |
| GRE | Gradient Echo | Sensitive to magnetic susceptibility; used for hemorrhage, cartilage imaging. |
| EPI | Echo Planar Imaging | Very fast acquisition; used in DWI, fMRI. |
| MPR | Multiplanar Reconstruction | Reconstructs images in different planes from a 3D dataset. |
| MIP | Maximum Intensity Projection | Displays highest signal voxels; used in angiography. |
| MPRAGE | Magnetization-Prepared Rapid Acquisition Gradient Echo | High-resolution 3D T1 sequence, often used in brain imaging. |
| SPGR | Spoiled Gradient Echo | Fast 3D sequence with good T1 contrast. |
| FSE / TSE | Fast Spin Echo / Turbo Spin Echo | Faster T2-weighted acquisitions, reduced motion artifacts. |
Musculoskeletal
| Abbreviation | Full Form | Key Points / Usage |
|---|---|---|
| FS | Fat Suppression | Enhances visibility of edema and contrast uptake. |
| SPAIR | Spectral Presaturation with Inversion Recovery | Selective fat suppression with less sensitivity to B0 inhomogeneity. |
| DESS | Dual Echo Steady State | High-resolution cartilage imaging. |
| MEDIC | Multiple Echo Data Image Combination | Siemens multi-echo GRE, reduces susceptibility artifacts. |
Neuro-Specific
| Abbreviation | Full Form | Key Points / Usage |
|---|---|---|
| SWAN | Susceptibility Weighted Angiography | Variant of SWI, better vascular detail. |
| PC-MRI | Phase Contrast MRI | Quantifies blood or CSF flow. |
| VBM | Voxel-Based Morphometry | Statistical analysis of brain structure differences. |
Vendor Specific
| Abbreviation | Full Form | Vendor | Key Points / Usage |
|---|---|---|---|
| FFE | Fast Field Echo | Philips | Philips term for Gradient Echo sequence; used for cartilage, hemorrhage, and angiography. |
| SENSE | Sensitivity Encoding | Philips | Parallel imaging technique to reduce scan time. |
| TFE | Turbo Field Echo | Philips | Philips equivalent of fast gradient sequences, similar to SPGR. |
| HASTE | Half-Fourier Acquisition Single-shot Turbo spin Echo | Siemens | Very fast single-shot T2-weighted imaging; used in abdomen and fetal MRI. |
| SPACE | Sampling Perfection with Application optimized Contrasts using different flip angle Evolution | Siemens | 3D TSE sequence with high spatial resolution. |
| TrueFISP | True Fast Imaging with Steady-state Precession | Siemens | Balanced SSFP sequence; bright fluid, high SNR. |
| FSPGR | Fast Spoiled Gradient Recalled Echo | GE | High-resolution T1-weighted 3D sequence, similar to MPRAGE. |
| LAVA | Liver Acquisition with Volume Acceleration | GE | Fast 3D T1-weighted GRE for abdominal imaging. |
| PROPELLER | Periodically Rotated Overlapping Parallel Lines with Enhanced Reconstruction | GE | Motion-corrected TSE acquisition, good for uncooperative patients. |
| FASE | Fast Advanced Spin Echo | Canon/Toshiba | Single-shot TSE sequence similar to HASTE. |
| CASL | Continuous Arterial Spin Labeling | Canon/Toshiba | Perfusion imaging technique without contrast. |
| RAPID | Rapid Acquisition with Phase Encoding Reduction | Hitachi | Fast scan sequence for reduced motion artifacts. |
| RAPID-GRE | Rapid GRE | Hitachi | Fast gradient echo acquisition for dynamic studies. |