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.