MR Microscopy of the Parotid Glands in Patients with Sjögren’s Syndrome: Quantitative MR Diagnostic Criteria

Characteristic MR imaging features of the parotid glands.

A–C, Axial T1-weighted images of parotid glands from a xerostomia patient without Sjögren’s syndrome (A), from a xerostomia patient with Sjögren’s syndrome (B), and from a patient with parotitis (C).

D–F, Axial fat-suppressed T2-weighted images of parotid glands from the xerostomia patient without Sjögren’s syndrome (D), from the xerostomia patient with Sjögren’s syndrome (E), and from the patient with parotitis (F), same patients as shown in A–C, respectively. Note the high-signal-intensity cores in the gland of the patient with Sjögren’s syndrome (E), suggestive of lymphocyte aggregations in the gland. This may be a characteristic feature of the glands affected by this disease.