Aim: We wanted to improve MRI visualization of early hip pathology invisible on plain radiographs.
Method: An MR arthrography of the hip with radial sequences is described. The standard MR technique is improved by 1) using a small flexible surface coil to show selectively the hip joint to be examined, 2) application of gadolinium intra-articularly and 3) by radial imaging sequences perpendicular to the true plane of the acetabulum.
Conclusion: By this technique it is possible to achieve an undistorted image of each aspect of the acetabular rim. Regions of special interest can be defined and their pathologies possibly related to morphologies of the proximal end of the femur.