[MR of the urinary tract in pregnancy]. / MR der Harnwege in der Schwangerschaft.

A report on the application of standard 2D-FT MR combined with RARE-MR-Urography in a pregnant woman with right sided abdominal pain, dilated upper urinary tract and possible stone or inflammatory disease. This technique visualised the complete obstructed ureter in relation to the surrounding organs (uterus, vessels), allows precise diagnosis of the cause of the obstruction and avoids ionising radiation.

[Traction injuries of the brachial plexus: radiologic diagnosis using myelo-CT and MR]. / Traktionsverletzungen des Plexus brachialis: radiologische Diagnostik mit Myelo-CT und MR.

The exact radiographic localisation of supraganglionic lesions of the brachial plexus provides important information for the prognosis and clinical management of these injuries. The authors report on the results of enhanced CT scanning and MRI of the cervical spine in five patients with surgically proven root avulsions caused by traction injuries. All lesions were correctly diagnosed by enhanced CT scanning. MRI, by comparison, identified only about 70% of the neural lesions.

[Initial clinical experiences with RARE-MR urography]. / Erste klinische Erfahrungen mit der RARE-MR-Urographie.

Potentials and limitations of a new, facultative non-tomographic Fast-Imaging sequence "RARE-MR-Urography" are presented. Its results in urological diseases are discussed on the basis of a pilot study of 35 patients. The images (4 s-32 s acquisition time) are extremely T2-weighted and display unbounded free water (urine). They reveal valuable information, not available with ultrasound or conventional radiology without application of contrast agents in the presence of urine retention. S/N problems reduce the accuracy of this method if the urinary tract contains only small amounts of urine.

[RARE-MR urography: a fast nontomographic imaging procedure for demonstrating the efferent urinary pathways using nuclear magnetic resonance]. / RARE-MR-Urographie: Ein schnelles nicht-tomographisches Aufnahmeverfahren zur Darstellung der ableitenden Harnwege mittels magnetischer Kernresonanz.

RARE-MR-Urography is a new fast data acquisition technique for magnetic resonance imaging. As a non-tomographic approach to the morphology of the urinary system, image information is similar to intravenous X-ray urography. As the sequence results in a heavily T2-weighted image displaying aqueous fluids, application of contrast agents is not necessary. Image quality is demonstrated by an exemplary case. Basic technical details and possible indications are discussed.