Assessment of bone perfusion with contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging.

Osteoarthritis and avascular necrosis are common clinical entities with unknown origins. Recently, vascular changes were implicated in the pathogenesis of both conditions. This article discusses the use of novel noninvasive imaging techniques as a means of assessing bone perfusion and quantifying differences seen in osteoarthritis and avascular necrosis. Review of our human data suggests that the MRI contrast dye is retained for longer periods of time, suggesting decreased perfusion out of regions of osteoarthritis and avascular necrosis. Use of such a noninvasive measure of assessing bone perfusion could be useful in the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of not only osteoarthritis and avascular necrosis but also other entities that affect the musculoskeletal system.