DIFFERENTIATION OF SILICONE GEL FROM WATER AND FAT IN MR PHASE IMAGING OF PROTONS AT 0.064-T

The authors present a method of identifying silicone at magnetic reson ance (MR) imaging based on its chemical shift. The method relies on ph ase images reconstructed from a gradient-recalled-echo sequence that h as an echo time chosen to maximize the phase offsets between water, fa t, and silicone. Results from studies at 0.064 T of both phantoms and human subjects are presented. This technique was useful in identifying extracapsular silicone and may be applicable at other field strengths .