Trigeminal neuralgia secondary to giant Virchow-Robin spaces: a case report with neuroimaging

Contribution of advanced MRI to the diagnosis of giant tumefactive perivascular spaces

BACKGROUND

Giant tumefactive perivascular spaces (PVSs) are uncommon benign cystic lesions. They can imitate cystic neoplasms.

PURPOSE

To evaluate the contribution of advanced neuro magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques in the diagnosis of giant tumefactive PVSs and to further characterize these unusual cerebral lesions.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

The MRI scans of patients with tumefactive PVS diagnosed between 2010 and 2019 were retrospectively reviewed. All imaging studies included three plane conventional cerebral MRI sequences as well as precontrast 3D T1 MPRAGE, post-gadolinium 3D T1 acquisitions, sagittal plane 3D T2 SPACE, diffusion-weighted imaging, and time-of-flight (TOF) angiography. Some patients received perfusion MR, MR spectroscopy, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), and contrast-enhanced TOF MR angiography.

RESULTS

A perforating vessel was demonstrated in 16 patients (66.7%) by TOF imaging. In four patients, there were intracystic vascular collaterals on contrast-enhanced TOF MR angiography. Septal blooming was observed in four patients in susceptibility-weighted imaging. On perfusion MR, central hyperperfusion was observed in four patients, and peripheral hyperperfusion was observed in one patient. On MR spectroscopy, choline increase was observed in two patients, and there was a lactate peak in three patients, and both a choline increase and lactate peak in one patient. On DTI, there was fiber distortion in five patients and fiber deformation in one patient.

CONCLUSION

Advanced MRI techniques and 3D volumetric high-resolution MRI sequences can provide a valuable contribution to the diagnosis and can be successfully used in the management of these lesions.

Enlarged Virchow-Robin Spaces in A Young Man: A Constrained Spherical Deconvolution Tractography Study

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Virchow-Robin spaces are mainly located along the path of the lenticulo-striate arteries in the basal ganglia through the anterior perforate substance, and can be found both in normal subjects, as a rare phenomenon, and in patients with different diseases. We report a case of a healthy young man with unilateral enlarged Virchow-Robin spaces in the left capsule-lenticulostriate area. Aim of this case report is to show the potential of probabilistic Constrained Spherical Deconvolution (CSD) tractography in showing abnormal diffusion tensor imaging and tractography of the anterior thalamic tracts caused by mass effect from adjacent enlarged Virchow-Robin spaces.

METHODS

The study was performed with a 3T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner (Achieva, Philips Healthcare, Best, Netherlands); equipped with a 32-channel SENSE head coil. Diffusion Weighted Images were analyzed by using CSD, a fast computation method that overcomes major limitations of Diffusion Tensor Imaging allowing reliable estimation of one or more fiber orientations in the presence of intravoxel orientational heterogeneity.

RESULTS

Tractography showed increased Fractional Anisotropy and reduced Apparent Diffusion Coefficient values, a displacement and compression of the anterior thalamic projections by part of the enlarged VRS, and a decrease of white matter fibers in the left side in comparison to the right one.

CONCLUSIONS

We report on a case of a healthy individual with unilateral dilated VRS in the capsulo-lenticulostriatal area, proving the utility of diffusion MRI and tractography in understanding the abnormal neuroanatomy of this particular condition.