Low field (0.02 T) magnetic resonance imaging of bone and soft tissue tumors

Extremely low field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was evaluated in 16 patients with bone and soft tissue tumors, both benign and malignant. Twelve of the lesions were located in the lower extremity, 2 in the gluteal and 2 in the shoulder region. The findings were compared to the results of computed tomography (CT). Low signal-to-noise ratio and poor spatial resolution result in an image quality which is inferior to that obtained with MR imaging at higher field strengths. In spite of this, the diagnostic information seems to be at least comparable to that obtained from CT.