Guide
MRI glossary
The terms that come up most often in MRI reports, in plain words. The glossary helps you read the report; what the result means for you is for your doctor to say.
General terms
Sequences: T1, T2, PD, STIR
Also written as: T1W, T2W, PD FS, FAT SAT, TSE; in Romanian reports: secvențe, DP (densitate de protoni)
An MRI takes several series of images, each with a different contrast. On T1, fat looks bright and fluid dark. On T2, fluid looks bright. PD (proton density) shows structures such as the menisci and cartilage in detail. Fat-suppressed sequences (FS, FAT SAT, STIR, for example PD FS) darken the fat so that fluid and oedema stand out as bright.
High and low signal
Also written as: hyperintense, hypointense; in Romanian reports: hipersemnal, hiposemnal
An area that looks brighter (high signal) or darker (low signal) than the tissue around it, or than that tissue normally looks, on a given sequence. On its own it is not a diagnosis: what matters is which sequence it shows on, where it is and what it looks like.
Planes: sagittal, coronal, axial
Also written as: SAG, COR, AX, TRA; in Romanian reports: sagital, coronal, axial
The directions the image is sliced in: sagittal, as seen from the side; coronal, as seen from the front; axial, in horizontal slices from top to bottom.
Bone marrow oedema
Also written as: bone bruise or bone contusion (when caused by an injury); in Romanian reports: edem osos, edem medular osos, contuzie osoasă
An area inside the bone that looks bright on fat-suppressed sequences, usually because it holds more fluid than usual. It often appears after a blow, a twist or overuse, but it can have other causes too.
Joint effusion
Also written as: joint fluid; in Romanian reports: revărsat articular, hidartroză, lichid intraarticular
More fluid in the joint than usual. A small amount can be normal. More fluid often appears after an injury or when the joint is inflamed.
Chondropathy (chondromalacia)
Also written as: cartilage lesion, grade I–IV; in Romanian reports: condropatie, condromalacie, leziune condrală
Changes in the cartilage that covers the ends of the bones in a joint, from slight softening to its loss. Reports often grade it: grade I is the mildest, and grade IV means the bone beneath the cartilage is exposed.
Osteoarthritis
Also written as: degenerative changes, gonarthrosis (in the knee); in Romanian reports: artroză, gonartroză, modificări degenerative
Wear of the joint over time: thinner cartilage, a narrower joint space and often osteophytes. Mild degenerative changes commonly come with age.
Osteophyte
Also written as: bone spur; in Romanian reports: osteofit
A small bony outgrowth at the edge of a joint, common in osteoarthritis.
Tendinopathy
Also written as: tendinosis, tendinitis; in Romanian reports: tendinopatie, tendinoză
A tendon that is thickened or shows changed signal, usually from overuse or wear with age. The word on its own does not mean a tear; if there is one, the report names it separately.
Partial or complete tear
Also written as: rupture, discontinuity; in Romanian reports: ruptură parțială, ruptură completă
A partial tear goes through only part of a ligament’s or tendon’s thickness. A complete tear goes all the way through, so the ends are no longer connected.
Sprain
Also written as: grade I, II or III ligament injury; in Romanian reports: entorsă
A ligament stretched or torn, usually by a twist. Grade I is a stretch, grade II a partial tear and grade III a complete tear.
Osteochondral lesion
Also written as: OCL; in Romanian reports: leziune osteocondrală
Damage that involves the cartilage and the bone beneath it. In the ankle it is most often on the talus, frequently after a sprain or another injury; in the knee, most often at the end of the thigh bone. Osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) is one form, seen mostly in young people, that is not always caused by an injury.
Knee
Meniscus
Also written as: medial and lateral meniscus, anterior horn, posterior horn; in Romanian reports: menisc, corn anterior, corn posterior
Two C-shaped cartilage cushions between the thigh bone and the shin bone: the medial meniscus on the inside and the lateral meniscus on the outside. They absorb shock and steady the knee. Reports often describe the anterior horn (the front part) or the posterior horn (the back part).
Grade I, II or III meniscal signal
Also written as: intrameniscal signal, meniscal degeneration; in Romanian reports: hipersemnal meniscal de gradul I, II, III
A way of describing signal inside the meniscus. Grades I and II are changes inside it that do not reach its upper or lower surface and are not counted as a tear; they often come with age. Grade III reaches one of those surfaces and usually corresponds to a tear.
Meniscal tear
Also written as: horizontal, vertical, radial or bucket-handle tear; in Romanian reports: fisură de menisc, ruptură de menisc, leziune meniscală
A tear in the meniscus. Reports usually say where it is (horn, body), what shape it has and whether a piece has moved. A bucket-handle tear is a long tear in which the inner part of the meniscus flips towards the middle of the knee.
Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL)
Also written as: ACL; in Romanian reports: ligamentul încrucișat anterior, LIA, LCA
The ligament in the middle of the knee that stops the shin bone from sliding forward under the thigh bone. It often tears in sports with sudden stops and changes of direction, such as football, basketball or skiing.
Posterior cruciate ligament (PCL)
Also written as: PCL; in Romanian reports: ligamentul încrucișat posterior, LIP, LCP
The ACL’s partner, behind it, which stops the shin bone from sliding backwards. It tears less often, for example from a direct blow to the front of a bent knee.
Collateral ligaments
Also written as: medial collateral ligament (MCL), lateral collateral ligament (LCL); in Romanian reports: ligamentul colateral medial, ligamentul colateral lateral
The ligaments on the sides of the knee: the medial collateral on the inside and the lateral collateral on the outside. They hold the knee steady when it is pushed sideways. The medial collateral is injured more often.
Kneecap (patella)
Also written as: retropatellar cartilage, chondromalacia patellae; in Romanian reports: rotulă, patelă, condromalacie patelară
The small bone at the front of the knee, which glides in a groove of the thigh bone. The cartilage on its back may appear in the report as changed or worn (chondromalacia patellae).
Baker’s cyst
Also written as: popliteal cyst; in Romanian reports: chist Baker, chist popliteu
A fluid-filled pouch at the back of the knee, connected to the joint. It often appears when more fluid than usual builds up in the knee, for example with osteoarthritis or after a meniscal injury.
Patellar and quadriceps tendons
Also written as: patellar ligament, jumper’s knee; in Romanian reports: tendonul rotulian, tendonul cvadricipital
The patellar tendon connects the kneecap to the shin bone, and the quadriceps tendon connects the muscle at the front of the thigh to the kneecap. Repeated jumping and running can overload them, which may show in the report as tendinopathy.
Ankle
Malleoli
Also written as: medial malleolus, lateral malleolus; in Romanian reports: maleola medială, maleola laterală
The bony bumps on either side of the ankle: the medial malleolus, part of the shin bone, on the inside, and the lateral malleolus, part of the fibula, on the outside.
Anterior talofibular ligament (ATFL)
Also written as: ATFL; in Romanian reports: ligamentul talofibular anterior, LTFA, ligamentul peroneo-astragalian anterior
The ligament on the outside of the ankle that is injured most often, in sprains where the foot rolls inwards.
Calcaneofibular ligament (CFL)
Also written as: CFL; in Romanian reports: ligamentul calcaneofibular, LCF, ligamentul peroneo-calcanean
Also on the outside of the ankle, below the ATFL. It is usually injured in more severe sprains, together with the ATFL.
Deltoid ligament
Also written as: medial ankle ligament; in Romanian reports: ligamentul deltoid
The broad, fan-shaped ligament on the inside of the ankle. It is injured less often than the ligaments on the outside.
Tibiofibular syndesmosis
Also written as: AITFL, high ankle sprain; in Romanian reports: sindesmoza tibiofibulară
The connection between the shin bone and the fibula just above the ankle. An injury to it is also called a high ankle sprain and usually heals more slowly than an ordinary sprain.
Achilles tendon
Also written as: calcaneal tendon; in Romanian reports: tendonul lui Ahile, tendon ahilean
The body’s largest tendon, which connects the calf muscles to the heel. The report may describe tendinopathy, a partial tear or a complete tear.
Peroneal tendons
Also written as: fibular tendons, peroneus longus, peroneus brevis; in Romanian reports: tendoanele peroniere
Two tendons that run behind the lateral malleolus, on the outside of the ankle. They can be affected after repeated sprains.
Tibialis posterior tendon
Also written as: posterior tibial tendon; in Romanian reports: tendonul tibial posterior
The tendon that runs behind the medial malleolus, on the inside of the ankle, and supports the arch of the foot.
Talus
Also written as: talar dome, astragalus; in Romanian reports: talus, astragal, domul talar
The ankle bone the shin bone rests on. After a sprain, the cartilage on its surface (the talar dome) can be injured together with the bone beneath it; this is called an osteochondral lesion.
Plantar fascia
Also written as: plantar aponeurosis, plantar fasciitis; in Romanian reports: fascia plantară, fasciită plantară
The thick band of tissue on the sole of the foot that runs from the heel towards the toes. When it is thickened or shows changed signal near the heel, the report may speak of plantar fasciitis, a common cause of heel pain.
See the terms on your own images
Remene explains your own report in plain words and shows, on the images, the area each explanation of the analysis comes from. Start with the free viewer or read how to open your MRI CD.