Journal of neuroimaging : official journal of the American Society of Neuroimaging
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Ventricular enlargement in elderly raises a challenging differential diagnosis to physicians. While Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia, idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) constitutes a potentially reversible syndrome. iNPH has a unique pathophysiology pertaining to cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) dynamics and periventricular white matter. We aimed to determine the effects of iNPH on periventricular white matter bundles and to further characterize its ventricular and sulcal CSF distribution by using diffusion tensor tractography (DTT) and CSF volumetrics on high resolution T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging data. ⋯ Combined microstructural (DTT) and macrostructural (ventricular volume) changes is a promising radiological approach in studying ventriculomegaly. Automated estimation of the disproportionate ventricular and sulcal CSF ratio in patients presenting with ventriculomegaly may be important as radiologic markers in differentiating iNPH from other causes of ventriculomegaly.
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Congenital cerebrovascular anomalies in the pediatric age group are myriad with diverse etiologies. The purpose of this paper is to provide an imaging overview of congenital vascular malformations and vascular tumors, as these conditions are varied and the characteristic vascular abnormality may even suggest the underlying systemic condition in helping to guide further management. For example, the identification of an arterial anomaly such as agenesis/hypoplasia/duplication may warrant further evaluation for an associated syndrome. ⋯ An accurate description of vascular lesions is critical for understanding the natural history of the disease process and ultimately for guiding treatment. An important example of this includes Sturge-Weber syndrome, which is often incorrectly viewed as an arteriovenous malformation, but actually a type of venous malformation. Another example which is important to recognize includes the differentiation between an infantile hemangioma and a vascular malformation, particularly as the course of the pathology and the treatment is so different between the two.
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Transient ischemic attack may rarely reveal an intracranial artery occlusion. We analyzed acute magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) patterns and early outcome after reperfusion therapy in these cases. ⋯ TIAs may reveal acute intracranial artery occlusion. Acute MRI may able to assist in therapeutic decision.
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Neonatal hypoxic-ischemic injury of the brain and resultant encephalopathy (HIE) leads to major developmental impairments by school age. Conventional/anatomical MRI often fails to detect hippocampal injury in mild cases. We hypothesize that diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) has greater sensitivity for identifying subtle hippocampal injury. ⋯ Quantitative DTI analysis of the hippocampus in neonates following HIE is a feasible technique to examine neuronal injury. Although DTI scalars were useful in identifying thalamic injury in our cohort, hippocampal DTI analysis did not provide additional information regarding hippocampal injury following HIE.
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This study aims to investigate the significance of regional hyperperfusion (RH) detected by arterial spin labeling (ASL) in a group of untreated stroke patients, within 24-36 hours after symptom onset. The relationship between RH volume and infarcted volume (DIV) as defined on diffusion weighted images (DWIs) was evaluated. ⋯ The study showed that ASL perfusion could be an integral part of the MRI examination in the assessment of 24-36 hours not-treated stroke patients as sustained RH group had improved outcomes. More importantly, ASL perfusion may provide evidence of beneficial effects of reperfusion induced by recanalization treatment.