Journal of neuroimaging : official journal of the American Society of Neuroimaging
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Apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values assist differentiating malignancy grades in pediatric cerebellar tumors. Previous studies reported the significance of ADC measurements within the solid, contrast-enhancing tumor component (SCT). These measurements take into account only a part of the tumor. In this study, we compared ADC measurements of the SCT versus entire tumor (ET). ⋯ A rigorous ADC measurement of the SCT has a higher sensitivity and specificity in predicting tumor grade compared to ADC measurement of the ET.
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The clinical implications of white matter hyperintensities (WMH) in non-demented Parkinson's disease (PD) have not been thoroughly examined. To address this, we investigated the spatial distribution of WMH and their regional predilection in non-demented patients with mild PD. ⋯ Voxel-wise LPM analysis revealed differences in the spatial distribution of WMH between PD-MCI and PD-NCI patients, particularly in the periventricular regions. A more widespread extent of WMH might be indicative of cognitive deterioration. Our findings warrant further longitudinal investigation into the importance of WMH spatial distribution as a predictor for conversion from PD to PD with dementia.
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Radiation myelopathy (RM) is a rare complication of spinal cord irradiation. Diagnosis is based on the history of radiotherapy, laboratory tests, and magnetic resonance imaging of the spinal cord. ⋯ We observed areas of restricted diffusion within the spinal cord which probably corresponded to the ischemic changes. This would concur with the currently accepted pathogenetic theory concerning RM.
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Amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) is associated with the risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Although diffusion tensor imaging (DTI)-based fractional anisotropy (FA) analyses have been used to evaluate white matter changes in patients with AD, it remains unknown how FA values change during the conversion of aMCI to AD. This study aimed to elucidate the prediction of conversion to AD and cognitive decline by FA values in uncinate fasciculus (UF) in aMCI patients. ⋯ These results suggested that FA values in the right UF might be an effective predictor of conversion of aMCI to AD.
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Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients show early changes in white matter (WM) structural integrity. We studied the use of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in assessing WM alterations in the predementia stage of mild cognitive impairment (MCI). ⋯ Our results suggest that DTI data provide better prediction accuracy than GM volume in predementia AD.