Journal of neuroimaging : official journal of the American Society of Neuroimaging
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This study's aim was to investigate diffusion properties of the cervical spinal cord in patients with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) through analysis of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data and thereby to assess the capacity of this technique for predicting the progression of CIS to clinically definite multiple sclerosis (CDMS). ⋯ This study presents evidence that histogram analysis of diffusion parameters of the cervical spinal cord in patients with CIS may be helpful in predicting conversion to CDMS.
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Comparative Study
Novel Ultrafast Spiral Head MR Angiography Compared to Standard MR and CT Angiography.
Intracranial vessel imaging by time-of-flight MR angiography (TOF-MRA) is one of the most frequently performed investigations in clinical neuroradiology. Particularly in the acute setting, fast imaging is needed for diagnostics, with a sequence ideally depicting even small vessels. The purpose of this study was to compare image and diagnostic quality of a novel ultrashort TOF-MRA sequence accelerated by spiral imaging (TOF-Spiral-short) to a standard TOF-MRA sequence accelerated by compressed sensing (TOF-CS) and to CT angiography (CTA). ⋯ Accelerating TOF-MRA of brain-feeding arteries by a novel ultrashort spiral imaging sequence shows adequate image quality and sufficient diagnostic performance. Thus, TOF-Spiral-short holds potential for fast and reliable diagnostics of vessel pathologies, particularly in the acute setting.
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Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we explored cortical activation in patients with acute Bell's palsy (BP) and analyzed its correlates with clinical status in the acute phase, and with 6-month outcome. ⋯ In patients with BP, fMRI may represent a useful tool to predict long-term outcome, guide therapeutic approach, and monitor treatment response.
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This study aimed to assess characteristic regions of MRI involvement utilizing diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) at urea cycle disorder (UCD) diagnosis to determine the possible association between initial MRI patterns within 10 days of the first hyperammonemia episode, serum ammonia levels, and severity of neurological outcome based on clinical follow-up of >30 days. ⋯ The presence of more severe neurological outcome could be associated with diffuse cerebral cortex or corpus striatum involvement on DWI and high serum ammonia levels in patients with UCD.
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A wide range of strategies have been developed to mitigate motion, as a major source of image quality degradation in clinical MRI. We aimed to assess the efficiency of a commercially available prospective motion correction (PMC) system in reducing motion in acquiring high-resolution 3D magnetization-prepared rapid gradient-echo (MPRAGE). ⋯ The described motion tracking system can be used effectively in clinical practice reducing motion artifact and improving image quality of 3D MPRAGE sequence.