Neuroradiology
-
The outcome of patients who show no early response to intravenous (i.v.) tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) therapy is poor. The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of rescue localized intra-arterial thrombolysis (LIT) therapy for acute ischemic stroke patients after an early non-responsive i.v. tPA therapy. Patients with proximal MCA occlusions who were treated by LIT (n = 10) after failure of early response [no improvement or improvement of National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores of < or = 3] to i.v. tPA therapy (0.9 mg/kg-10% bolus and 90% i.v. infusion over 60 min) were selected. ⋯ Three months good outcome was noted in 4/10 (40%, mRS 0-2) and 3/10 (30%, BI > or = 95). In conclusion, rescue LIT therapy can be considered as a treatment option for patients not showing early response to full dose i.v. tPA therapy. Larger scale studies for further validation of this protocol may be necessary.
-
Patients with supratentorial high-grade glioma underwent surgery within a vertically open 0.5-T magnetic resonance (MR) system to evaluate the efficacy of intraoperative MR guidance in achieving gross-total resection. For 31 patients, preoperative clinical data and MR findings were consistent with the putative diagnosis of a high-grade glioma, in 23 cases in eloquent regions. Tumor resections were carried out within a 0.5-T MR SIGNA SP/i (GE Medical Systems, USA). ⋯ We found a significant difference (log(rank)p = 0.0037) in the mean survival times of the two groups with complete resection (n = 10, median survival time 537 days) and incomplete resection (n = 17, median survival time 237 days). The resection of primary glioblastoma multiforme under intraoperative MR guidance as demonstrated is a possibility to achieve a more complete removal of the tumor than with conventional techniques. In our small but homogeneous patient group we found an increase in the median survival time in patients with MRI for complete tumor resection, and the overall surgical morbidity was low.
-
CT and MRI have the potential to become useful adjuncts to forensic autopsy in the near future. The examination of fatal injuries facilitates a profound experience in the clinical-radiological examination of these cases; the more severe findings in corpses with autopsy verification can help one to understand the tiny signs seen in clinical cases of surviving victims. ⋯ These findings were confirmed at autopsy. Appropriate imaging techniques can help forensic pathologists to aim their autopsies at findings that might otherwise remain undetected.
-
In carotid arterial stenting (CAS), ischemic complications and cerebral hyperperfusion are recognized as devastating complications. To detect these complications in early stages, we assessed the feasibility for real-time measurement of regional oxygen saturation (rSO2) of the brain in 24 patients with symptomatic extracranial carotid artery stenosis in CAS. ⋯ Moreover, the pattern of changes in rSO2 was significantly correlated with the asymmetry index and the cerebral vasoreactivity examined by preoperative SPECT. Therefore, simultaneous monitoring of rSO2 is feasible in detecting early hemodynamic complications in CAS.
-
The purpose of this paper is to perform quantitative measurements of the magnetization transfer rate (Kfor) and native T1 relaxation time (T1free) in the brain tissue of normal individuals and patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) by means of multiple gradient echo acquisitions, and to correlate these measurements with the magnetization transfer ratio (MTR). Quantitative magnetization transfer imaging was performed in five normal volunteers and 12 patients with relapsing-remitting MS on a 1.5 T magnetic resonance (MR) scanner. The T1 relaxation time under magnetization transfer irradiation (T1sat) was calculated by means of fitting the signal intensity over the flip angle in several 3D spoiled gradient echo acquisitions (3 degrees , 15 degrees , 30 degrees , and 60 degrees ), while a single acquisition without MT irradiation (flip angle of 3 degrees ) was utilized to calculate the MTR. ⋯ In severely hypointense lesions, an excellent correlation was found between Kfor and T1free measurements (r2=0.98, p<0.0001). Strong correlations between Kfor and T1free were found for the rest of the subgroups, except for the NAWM, in which a moderate correlation was obtained (r2=0.5, p<0.0001). We conclude that Kfor and T1free measurements are feasible and may improve our understanding of the pathological brain changes that occur in MS patients.