Fat fractions and spectral T₂ values in vertebral bone marrow in HIV- and non-HIV-infected men: A ¹H spectroscopic imaging study

Fat fractions and spectral T₂ values of fat and water within the vertebral marrow of non-HIV- and HIV-infected men were measured with the use of a Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill (CPMG) line scan spectroscopic imaging sequence. The fat fraction for the HIV-infected men (0.29 ± 0.08) was significantly lower (P < 0.05, Student's unpaired t-test) than the fat fraction found in non-HIV-infected men (0.40 ± 0.12). The mean water and fat T₂ values did not differ between the two groups, and did not show any systematic dependence on fat fraction over the wide range of fat fractions encountered in this study. The marrow water and fat T₂ values measured with the CPMG approach were markedly longer than the spectral T₂ values reported by other groups using the more common point-resolved spectroscopy (PRESS) and stimulated-echo acquisition mode (STEAM) acquisitions. Proton spectroscopic studies of vertebral marrow revealed differences between non-HIV- and HIV-infected men that may prove useful for studying the effects of this disease and/or antiretroviral agents on body composition.