Published in:
Open Access 01-05-2016 | Neuro
Cerebrospinal fluid volumetric MRI mapping as a simple measurement for evaluating brain atrophy
Published in: European Radiology | Issue 5/2016
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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 T
2
of the CSF is related to brain atrophy.