Role of chemical shift and Dixon based techniques in musculoskeletal MR imaging.

Fat suppression technique is a valuable resource in musculoskeletal magnetic resonance (MR) imaging that is helpful in the diagnosis and differentiation of various pathologies. Multiple different techniques are available for fat suppression, including frequency selective pulse sequence, inversion recovery, hybrid technique, chemical shift imaging (CSI) and the related Dixon based approach. The utility of CSI and Dixon approach is not well recognized in the domain of musculoskeletal MR imaging. The aim of this article is to review the various options for fat suppression and present focused discussion of the role of CSI and Dixon techniques for musculoskeletal MR imaging.