<b><i>Background:</i></b> Recent reports advocate the use of MRI either as a substitute for postmortem examinations or for a more targeted autopsy. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> A full-body postmortem MRI (pMRI) of infants was performed as early as possible after death, and findings were compared to clinical premortem diagnoses. <b><i>Results:</i></b> Thirty-one infants were scanned during the study period. Median gestation at birth was 34 weeks (ranges: 24–43). In 3 (10%) cases, no new findings were detected. In 2 (6%), new minor findings not related to the cause of death were detected, and in 17 (55%), new minor findings related to the cause of death were detected. New major findings related to the cause of death were detected in 4 (13%) cases, and new major findings not related to the cause of death were detected in 5 (16%) cases. In 3 (10%), findings thought to alter the perceived cause of death were detected. Overall, in 23 (74%) cases, pMRI findings reinforced the clinical premortem diagnoses. <b><i>Conclusions:</i></b> pMRI is a culturally accepted alternative when autopsy is not performed and can either reinforce, refute, or add to premortem clinical diagnoses.
BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: Therapeutic hypothermia (TH) initiated within the fi rst 6 hours after birth, is proven to decrease brain tissue injury in moderate to severe neonatal encephalopathy (NE) and improve 18-24 month neurological outcomes. Recently, a correlation between the resistive index (RI) of the anterior cerebral artery on head ultrasound (HUS) performed after rewarming and severity of injury on MRI was reported. It remains unknown whether early RI anomalies (before rewarming) may be associated with severity of injury on MRI and as such, might have prognostic value for infants too unstable to undergo an MRI within the optimal time window. The aim of this study was to evaluate: (i) the association between a low anterior cerebral artery RI on HUS obtained during active TH and the severity of brain injury on MRI, and to examine the association between the RI value and outcomes at 48 months of age.
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