Imaging human teeth by phosphorus magnetic resonance with nuclear Overhauser enhancement

Three-dimensional phosphorus MR images (P-31 MRI) of teeth are obtained at a nominal resolution of 0.5 mm in less than 15 minutes using acquisition pulse sequences sensitive to ultra-short transversal relaxation times. The images directly reflect the spatially resolved phosphorus content of mineral tissue in dentin and enamel; they show a lack of signal from pulp tissue and reduced signal from de-mineralized carious lesions. We demonstrate for the first time that the signal in P-31 MR images of mineralized tissue is enhanced by a H-1-P-31 nuclear Overhauser effect (NOE). Using teeth as a model for imaging mineralized human tissue, graded differences in signal enhancement are observed that correlate well with known mineral content. From solid-state NMR experiments we conclude that the NOE is facilitated by spin diffusion and that the NOE difference can be assigned to a higher water content and a different micro-structure of dentin. Thus, a novel method for imaging mineral content without ionizing radiation is proposed. This method has potential use in the assessment of de-mineralization states in humans, such as caries of teeth and osteoporosis of bones.