Ingenia 3t with dstream body coilsolution

CT and MRI were conducted as previously established.^{13 (link)}
CT was carried out with a Somatom ART (Siemens Medical Solutions) to
document musculotendinous retraction and to record the density of the muscle
tissue in Hounsfield units. MRI was performed with a 3.0-T system using a
dedicated receive-only extremity coil (Philips Ingenia 3T with dStream body coil
solution; Philips AG) to determine muscle volume, fat, and water fraction in
voxels corresponding to the targeted regions as identified by the radiodense
sutures.

Dogs were examined 1 day after surgery and 10 months post-operatively, as described previously by our group^{12 (link)}. Briefly, clinical assessment consisted of a physical and neurological examination performed by a board-certified neurologist (FS) to identify neurological deficits and signs of pain. For the late follow-up, the standardized owner questionnaire was again used to evaluate the dogs’ condition during unrestricted, daily exercise. If dogs developed clinical signs before the 10 months follow-up, they were assessed and scored clinically and underwent an intermediate MRI examination.
MRI of the lumbosacral junction was performed to support the clinical diagnosis of DLSS and to assess the degenerative stage of the IVD using the Pfirrmann scheme validated for dogs^{17 (link)}, prior to and after treatment. A 3 T MRI system (Philips Ingenia 3 T with dStream body coil solution; Philips AG) was used. Dogs were positioned in dorsal recumbence with the pelvic limbs in extension. T2-weighted and T1-weighted turbo spin echo sequences were obtained.