Magnetic resonance imaging of feline eye

The purpose of this study was to investigate magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the normal feline eye and optic nerves using TI-weighted and T2-weighted images. A total of 6 healthy female domestic short hair cats age 2-2.5 years and weighing 3.2 ± 0.4 kg were selected. Magnetic resonance imaging data were collected using GEMSOW (Philips) at a magnetic field strength of 1.5 T. Dorsal, sagittal, and transverse plane images were obtained from left and right eyes. Intraocular structures of the cats visibIe on TI-weighted and T2-weighted images include cornea, anterior chamber, posterior chamber, lens, iris, sclera, and chiasma. Cornea was well detected in Tj-weighted, the iris in T2-weighted and chiasma was well detected in T2weighted in dorsal plane. Measurements of the visible structures on Tj-weighted and Ty-weighted images did not show any significant difference between the left and right eyes (P 0.05). MRI provides excellent anatomical detail of the feline eye and optic nerve due to its superior soft tissue contrast and its muitiplanar and multislice imaging capability.