• Robert Hamilton, Justin Dye, Andrew Frew, Kevin Baldwin, Xiao Hu, and Marvin Bergsneider.
• Department of Neurosurgery, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
• Acta Neurochir. Suppl. 2012 Jan 1; 114: 191-5.

BackgroundPhase-contrast MRI (PC-MRI) has previously been used for the quantification of CSF and blood flow throughout the body. We propose a new method of semi-automated segmentation for the prepontine cistern based on anatomical and pulsatility information.MethodsScans were conducted on 48 patients (69.83 ± 14.28 years) ranging in age from 32 to 88 years along with an additional 11 controls (51.91 ± 21.13 years) ranging in age from 22 to 72 years. The segmentation algorithm developed consists of four stages: anatomical, flow quantification for the aqueduct and prepontine cistern, and blood vessel detection.ResultsComplete results are presented in Table 1, the 37 preoperative patients and controls had a prepontine cistern stroke volume of 464.32 ± 202.30 and 447.38 ± 75.49 respectively.ConclusionReliable quantification of volumetric CSF flow in complex cisternal spaces is possible using a methodology combining known anatomical features with the pulsatile nature of CSF flow.

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