Degenerative lumbar spine disorders in gradient refocused echo axial magnetic resonance images.

The axial images of 58 lumbar disks having degenerative disorders imaged by gradient refocused echo (GRE) and spin echo (SE) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) pulse sequences at high field strength were compared for diagnostic quality. The vacuum phenomenon, calcified disk, and bony hypertrophic changes were better demonstrated by GRE images than by SE images due to magnetic susceptibility effect. Axial GRE images are therefore useful adjuncts to SE images for effective MRI of degenerative lumbar spine disorders at high field strength.