Abstract
Objectives: To assess whether volumetric cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) MRI can be used as a surrogate for brain atrophy assessment and to evaluate how the T2 of the CSF relates to brain atrophy. Methods: Twenty-eight subjects [mean age 64 (sd 2) years] were included; T1-weighted and CSF MRI were performed. The first echo data of the CSF MRI sequence was used to obtain intracranial volume, CSF partial volume was measured voxel-wise to obtain CSF volume (VCSF) and the T2 of CSF (T2,CSF) was calculated. The correlation between VCSF / T2,CSF and brain atrophy scores [global cortical atrophy (GCA) and medial temporal lobe atrophy (MTA)] was evaluated. Results: Relative total, peripheral subarachnoidal, and ventricular VCSF increased significantly with increased scores on the GCA and MTA (R = 0.83, 0.78 and 0.78 and R = 0.72, 0.62 and 0.86). Total, peripheral subarachnoidal, and ventricular T2 of the CSF increased significantly with higher scores on the GCA and MTA (R = 0.72, 0.70 and 0.49 and R = 0.60, 0.57 and 0.41). Conclusion: A fast, fully automated CSF MRI volumetric sequence is an alternative for qualitative atrophy scales. The T2 of the CSF is related to brain atrophy and could thus be a marker of neurodegenerative disease. Key points: • A 1:11 min CSF MRI volumetric sequence can evaluate brain atrophy. • CSF MRI provides accurate atrophy assessment without partial volume effects. • CSF MRI data can be processed quickly without user interaction. • The measured T2of the CSF is related to brain atrophy.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 1254-1262 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | European radiology |
Volume | 26 |
Issue number | 5 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - May 1 2016 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Brain atrophy
- Brain volume
- Cerebrospinal fluid
- Imaging
- Magnetic resonance imaging
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Radiology Nuclear Medicine and imaging