Demonstration of the postcommissural fibres of the fornix in short-inversion time inversion-recovery imaging on a high-field system

Improved visualization of the subthalamic nucleus on synthetic MRI with optimized parameters: initial study

BACKGROUND

Synthetic magnetic resonance imaging (SyMRI) enables to reformat various images by adjusting the MR parameters.

PURPOSE

To investigate whether customization of the repetition time (TR), echo time (TE), and inversion time (TI) in SyMRI could improve the visualization of subthalamic nucleus (STN).

MATERIAL AND METHODS

We examined five healthy volunteers using both coronal SyMRI and quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM), seven patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) using coronal SyMRI, and 15 patients with PD using coronal QSM. Two neuroradiologists reformatted SyMRI (optimized SyMRI) by adjusting TR, TE, and TI to achieve maximum tissue contrast between the STN and the adjacent brain parenchyma. The optimized MR parameters in the PD patients varied according to the individual. For regular SyMRI (T2-weighted imaging [T2WI] and STIR), optimized SyMRI, and QSM, qualitative visualization scores of the STN (STN score) were recorded. The contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) of the STN was also measured.

RESULTS

For the STN scores in both groups, the optimized SyMRI were significantly higher than the regular SyMRI (P < 0.05), and there were no significant differences between optimized SyMRI and QSM. For the CNR of differentiation of the STN from the substantia nigra, the optimized SyMRI was higher than the regular SyMRI (volunteer: T2WI P = 0.10 and STIR P = 0.26; PD patient: T2WI P = 0.43 and STIR P = 0.25), but the optimized SyMRI was lower than the QSM (volunteer: P = 0.26; PD patient: P = 0.03).

CONCLUSIONS

On SyMRI, optimization of MR parameters (TR, TE, and TI) on an individual basis may be useful to increase the conspicuity of the STN.

Diffusion imaging-based subdivision of the human hypothalamus: a magnetic resonance study with clinical implications

The hypothalamus and its subdivisions are involved in many neuropsychiatric conditions such as affective disorders, schizophrenia, or narcolepsy, but parcellations of hypothalamic subnuclei have hitherto been feasible only with histological techniques in postmortem brains. In an attempt to map subdivisions of the hypothalamus in vivo, we analyzed the directionality information from high-resolution diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance images of healthy volunteers. We acquired T1-weighted and diffusion-weighted scans in ten healthy subjects at 3 T. In the T1-weighted images, we manually delineated an individual mask of the hypothalamus in each subject and computed in the co-registered diffusion-weighted images the similarity of the principal diffusion direction for each pair of mask voxels. By clustering the similarity matrix into three regions with a k-means algorithm, we obtained an anatomically coherent arrangement of subdivisions across hemispheres and subjects. In each hypothalamus mask, we found an anterior region with dorsoventral principal diffusion direction, a posteromedial region with rostro-caudal direction, and a lateral region with mediolateral direction. A comparative analysis with microstructural hypothalamus parcellations from the literature reveals that each of these regions corresponds to a specific group of hypothalamic subnuclei as defined in postmortem brains. This is to our best knowledge the first in vivo study that attempts a delineation of hypothalamic subdivisions by clustering diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging data. When applied in a larger sample of neuropsychiatric patients, a structural analysis of hypothalamic subnuclei should contribute to a better understanding of the pathogenesis of neuropsychiatric conditions such as affective disorders.

Acute white matter differences in the fornix following mild traumatic brain injury using diffusion tensor imaging

The integrity of the fornix using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in adolescent participants with acute mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) compared to a demographically matched control group was examined. Fractional anisotropy (FA) in the fornix was elevated in the mild traumatic brain injured group. Performance on the Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metrics (ANAM) was lower in the group with mTBI. A relation was found between lower performance on cognitive tasks and higher FA. The potential role of fornix injury as a basis of memory and processing speed deficits in mTBI is discussed.

Utility of 3-T FLAIR and 3D short tau inversion recovery MR imaging in the preoperative diagnosis of hippocampal sclerosis: direct comparison with 1.5-T FLAIR MR imaging

PURPOSE

To examine the utility of fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) imaging and three-dimensional short tau inversion recovery (3DSTIR) imaging using a 3-Tesla (3-T) magnetic resonance (MR) imager in the preoperative evaluation of hippocampal sclerosis (HS).

METHODS

Thirteen patients with intractable medial temporal lobe epilepsy who underwent anterior temporal lobectomy with amygdalohippocampectomy were studied. MR images were obtained twice, once with a 1.5-T imager and once with a 3-T imager. The extent of hippocampal resection was determined according to the findings on intraoperative hippocampal electroencephalography. We compared the diagnostic utility of FLAIR for HS between 1.5-T and 3-T MR imaging. In addition, the relationship between the existence of hypointense areas in the hippocampus (HIAs) on 3DSTIR and the severity of HS pathology (as evaluated using Watson's grading) was examined. The relationship between postoperative seizure outcome and postoperatively remaining HIAs was also evaluated.

RESULTS

There was no difference between FLAIR images from 1.5-T and 3-T imaging in the detection of HS. With 3DSTIR, an HIA in unilateral hippocampus was observed in all of the nine cases exhibiting severe pathologic HS (Watson's grade III-V). In seven cases with HIA, the extent of hippocampal resection was smaller than the HIAs. Every case showed good seizure outcome (Engel's class I and II).

DISCUSSION

In the diagnosis of HS, no substantial difference was noted between 1.5-T and 3-T MR imaging. However, 3DSTIR using 3-T MR imaging is useful for evaluating the extent of HS, although postoperative HS remnants are not correlated with surgical outcomes.

Human subthalamic nucleus: evaluation with high-resolution MR imaging at 3.0 T

INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this study was to compare the visibility of the normal subthalamic nucleus (STN) between fast spin-echo T2-weighted (FSE T2-W) images and fast short inversion time inversion-recovery (FSTIR) images, and to assess the age-related changes of the STN at 3.0 T.

METHODS

We evaluated high-resolution FSE T2-W and FSTIR images in 24 neurologically normal subjects. Using both sequences, we assessed the visibility of the margins of the STN, and calculated the difference in signal intensity between the STN and structures adjacent to the STN. Then, to assess the age-related changes of the STN, we calculated the contrast-to-noise ratio between the STN and the white matter, and measured the position, length, and height of the STN. All data were statistically evaluated.

RESULTS

The visibility of the lower margin of the STN was significantly better on the FSTIR images than on the FSE T2-W images (P = 0.0001), while the visibility of other margins was significantly better on the FSE T2-W images than on the FSTIR mages (P = 0.002). The difference in signal intensity between the STN and substantia nigra was significantly greater on the FSTIR images than on the FSE T2-W images (P < 0.0001). The distance from the midline to the lateral border of the STN increased with age (FSE T2-W images: left r = 0.4916, P = 0.015; right r = 0.4442, P = 0.030).

CONCLUSION

The combined reading of both FSE T2-W and FSTIR images at 3 T will improve the identification of the STN. The age-related positional change of the STN should be considered in target determination for deep brain stimulation procedures.