Cine phase-contrast magnetic resonance imaging as a tool for quantification of skeletal muscle motion.

In recent years, biomechanics researchers have increasingly used dynamic magnetic resonance imaging techniques, such as cine phase contrast (cine PC), to study muscle and bone motion in vivo. Magnetic resonance imaging provides a non-invasive tool to visualize the anatomy and measure musculoskeletal tissue velocities during joint motion. Current application of cine PC magnetic resonance imaging in biomechanics includes study of knee joint kinematics, tendon strain, and skeletal muscle displacement and shortening.