SWI and T2* GRE: how they show blood and calcium
Both are sensitive to susceptibility, so bleeding, iron and calcium become dark. This is what each shows and what to check.
SWI and T2* GRE
Dark and enlarged (blooming): blood products, iron, calcium, veins, air.
Haemorrhage and microbleeds, cavernoma, diffuse axonal injury, calcification, venous anatomy. In joints, T2* GRE shows haemosiderin (PVNS).
Blooming makes things look larger than they are. Signal is lost at the skull base and near sinuses. Calcium and blood are separated on the phase image, and the convention differs between vendors.
This page is one entry from the MRI Technologist Reference
The full reference has 31 protocols, 9 dynamic study timelines, 19 artifacts, 16 scanner problems and 15 safety topics, as a PDF in English and Arabic plus an interactive tool.
Educational reference. It does not replace your site protocols, the radiologist's instructions, the MR safety officer, or the manufacturer's instructions for any implant, device or contrast agent. Parameter values are typical starting points at 1.5 T and must be adapted to the scanner, coil and patient.