International journal of stroke : official journal of the International Stroke Society
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The 'penumbra' is a concept coined in animal experiments suggesting that functionally impaired tissue can survive and recover if sufficient reperfusion is re-established within a limited time period, which depends on the level of residual flow. In an ischaemic territory, irreversible damage progresses over time from the centre of the most severe flow reduction to the periphery with less disturbed perfusion. This centrifugal progression of irreversible tissue damage is characterised by a complex cascade of interconnected electrophysiological, molecular, metabolic and perfusion disturbances. ⋯ As a widely applicable clinical tool, diffusion/perfusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging is used; the 'mismatch' between perfusion and diffusion changes serves as a surrogate marker of the penumbra. However, in comparative studies of magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography, diffusion-weighted imaging showed a high false-positive rate of irreversible damage, and the perfusion-weighted-diffusion-weighted mismatch overestimated the penumbra as defined by positron emission tomography. Advanced analytical procedures of magnetic resonance imaging data may improve the reliability of these surrogate markers but should be validated with quantitative procedures.