A technique for magnetic resonance imaging of equine cadaver specimens

We tested an adaptation of a technique for performing magnetic resonance (M R), imaging of human cadaver limbs in the horse. The forelimbs from a norma l horse were collected, frozen, and sealed with a paraffin-polymer combinat ion prior to imaging with either a high- or midfield magnetic resonance sca nner. Each forelimb was defrosted, scanned, and refrozen on two separate oc casions. A five-point stale was used to evaluate the quality of each set of sagittal and transverse, T1-weighted images of each digit. There was no di fference in image quality between first and second scans of either specimen (p > 0.05), We conclude that this technique allows investigators to bank t issue specimens for future magnetic resonance imaging without significant l oss of image quality.