AJNR. American journal of neuroradiology
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AJNR Am J Neuroradiol · Jun 2012
Diffusion tensor imaging of the normal pediatric spinal cord using an inner field of view echo-planar imaging sequence.
DTI in the brain has been well established, but its application in the spinal cord, especially in pediatrics, poses several challenges. The small cord size has inherent low SNR of the diffusion signal intensity, respiratory and cardiac movements induce artifacts, and EPI sequences used for obtaining diffusion indices cause eddy-current distortions. The purpose of this study was to 1) evaluate the accuracy of cervical spinal cord DTI in children using a newly developed iFOV sequence with spatially selective 2D-RF excitations, and 2) examine reproducibility of the DTI measures. ⋯ This study showed that accurate and reproducible DTI parameters can be estimated in the pediatric cervical spinal cord using an iFOV EPI sequence.
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AJNR Am J Neuroradiol · May 2012
Quantification of the human lateral geniculate nucleus in vivo using MR imaging based on morphometry: volume loss with age.
Because it is a small subcortical structure, the precise measurement of the human LGN is still a technical challenge. In this article, we identify the LGN in vivo, measure its volume based on high-resolution MR imaging, and then relate its volume to subject age to evaluate the potential clinical application. ⋯ Using our new technique, we were able to reliably determine the human LGN volume in vivo, which was found to decline with age. The volumes obtained by our method corresponded well with previously reported postmortem values, so our method may be considered to be superior for investigating the pathology of LGN.
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AJNR Am J Neuroradiol · May 2012
Age-related complications following endovascular treatment of unruptured intracranial aneurysms.
The factors that led us to do the research for this paper was a desire to see if elderly patients did as well as non-elderly patients during endovascular intracranial aneurysm treatment. By doing this research, we could better stratify the most appropriate treatment for each patient with an aneurysm. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the incidence of procedural complications was greater in the elderly, defined as patients older than 65 years of age, compared with nonelderly patients undergoing elective endovascular treatment for intracranial aneurysms. ⋯ Major functional complications were markedly more common in the elderly compared with the nonelderly.
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AJNR Am J Neuroradiol · May 2012
Clinical correlation of a new MR imaging method for assessing lumbar foraminal stenosis.
Recently, Lee et al reported a new grading system for the lumbar spinal foraminal stenosis. They considered the type of stenosis, the amount of fat obliteration, and the presence of nerve root compression. Our aim was to evaluate whether a new MR imaging grading system correlated with symptoms and neurologic signs and could replace the previous grading system. ⋯ Interobserver agreement of the Lee system was slightly higher than the Wildermuth system and substantially correlated. Both systems are good for evaluation of lumbar spinal foraminal stenosis, but the Lee system showed slightly better interobserver agreement and good clinical correlation in the younger group of patients.
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AJNR Am J Neuroradiol · May 2012
Endovascular therapy of 500 small asymptomatic unruptured intracranial aneurysms.
Although the natural course of UIAs remains unclear, the risk of aneurysmal SAH due to small (<10 mm) asymptomatic UIAs is low. Endovascular therapy for UIAs has increased because of device development and the need for less invasive treatment. We report the results, safety, and efficacy of endovascular therapy of small asymptomatic UIAs. ⋯ In this series, endovascular therapy of small asymptomatic UIAs was highly feasible with low morbidity and mortality rates.