Purpose: To evaluate the single shot fast spin echo sequence (SSFSE) rapid MRI sequence for swallowing study, to describe the swallowing phases analyzable by kinetic MR Imaging and to show the advantages and the limits of the method in patients treated for head and neck cancer.
Methods and materials: A preliminary study was conducted in 8 healthy volunteers and 11 patients treated for a head and neck cancer between June 1999 and April 2001. Examinations were obtained on a 1.5 T machine using a multi-slice SSFSE sequence with an acquisition time of 1 second/slice. The different phases of swallowing were analyzed. Examinations were done with and without water ingestion.
Results: Kinetic MRI allows to clearly analyze the anatomy and the dynamic of the tongue, the soft palate, the hyoid bone, the larynx and the posterior pharyngeal wall. The hypopharyngeal and esophageal phases were suboptimally assessed.
Conclusion: Kinetic MRI allows to clearly analyze the oral and early pharyngeal phases of swallowing, which can be correlated with normal and surgically reconstructed areas in spite of the low temporal resolution and the non-physiologic position. It is simple and rapid to perform and may be useful in treated patients with head and neck cancer.