Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) dynamics in the cervical spinal subarachnoid space (SSS) have been thought to be important to help diagnose and assess craniospinal disorders such as Chiari I malformation (CM). In this study we obtained time-resolved three directional velocity encoded phase-contrast MRI (4D PC MRI) in three healthy volunteers and four CM patients and compared the 4D PC MRI measurements to subject-specific 3D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. The CFD simulations considered the geometry to be rigid-walled and did not include small anatomical structures such as nerve roots, denticulate ligaments and arachnoid trabeculae. Results were compared at nine axial planes along the cervical SSS in terms of peak CSF velocities in both the cranial and caudal direction and visual interpretation of thru-plane velocity profiles. 4D PC MRI peak CSF velocities were consistently greater than the CFD peak velocities and these differences were more pronounced in CM patients than in healthy subjects. In the upper cervical SSS of CM patients the 4D PC MRI quantified stronger fluid jets than the CFD. Visual interpretation of the 4D PC MRI thru-plane velocity profiles showed greater pulsatile movement of CSF in the anterior SSS in comparison to the posterior and reduction in local CSF velocities near nerve roots. CFD velocity profiles were relatively uniform around the spinal cord for all subjects. This study represents the first comparison of 4D PC MRI measurements to CFD of CSF flow in the cervical SSS. The results highlight the utility of 4D PC MRI for evaluation of complex CSF dynamics and the need for improvement of CFD methodology. Future studies are needed to investigate whether integration of fine anatomical structures and gross motion of the brain and/or spinal cord into the computational model will lead to a better agreement between the two techniques.

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) dynamics in the spinal subarachnoid space (SSS) have been thought to play an important pathophysiological role in syringomyelia, Chiari I malformation (CM), and a role in intrathecal drug delivery. Yet, the impact that fine anatomical structures, including nerve roots and denticulate ligaments (NRDL), have on SSS CSF dynamics is not clear. In the present study we assessed the impact of NRDL on CSF dynamics in the cervical SSS. The 3D geometry of the cervical SSS was reconstructed based on manual segmentation of MRI images of a healthy volunteer and a patient with CM. Idealized NRDL were designed and added to each of the geometries based on in vivo measurments in the literature and confirmation by a neuroanatomist. CFD simulations were performed for the healthy and patient case with and without NRDL included. Our results showed that the NRDL had an important impact on CSF dynamics in terms of velocity field and flow patterns. However, pressure distribution was not altered greatly although the NRDL cases required a larger pressure gradient to maintain the same flow. Also, the NRDL did not alter CSF dynamics to a great degree in the SSS from the foramen magnum to the C1 level for the healthy subject and CM patient with mild tonsillar herniation (∼6 mm). Overall, the NRDL increased fluid mixing phenomena and resulted in a more complex flow field. Comparison of the streamlines of CSF flow revealed that the presence of NRDL lead to the formation of vortical structures and remarkably increased the local mixing of the CSF throughout the SSS.

For the first time, inter-operator dependence of MRI based computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the cervical spinal subarachnoid space (SSS) is evaluated. In vivo MRI flow measurements and anatomy MRI images were obtained at the cervico-medullary junction of a healthy subject and a Chiari I malformation patient. 3D anatomies of the SSS were reconstructed by manual segmentation by four independent operators for both cases. CFD results were compared at nine axial locations along the SSS in terms of hydrodynamic and geometric parameters. Intraclass correlation (ICC) assessed the inter-operator agreement for each parameter over the axial locations and coefficient of variance (CV) compared the percentage of variance for each parameter between the operators. Greater operator dependence was found for the patient (0.19 0.78). For the healthy subject, hydraulic diameter and Womersley number had the least variance (CV= ~2%). For the patient, peak diastolic velocity and Reynolds number had the smallest variance (CV= ~3%). These results show a high degree of inter-operator reliability for MRI-based CFD simulations of CSF flow in the cervical spine for healthy subjects and a lower degree of reliability for patients with Type I Chiari malformation.

The purpose of the present study was to compare subject-specific magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations with time-resolved three-directional (3D) velocity-encoded phase-contrast MRI (4D PCMRI) measurements of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) velocity field in the cervical spinal subarachnoid space (SSS). Three-dimensional models of the cervical SSS were constructed based on MRI image segmentation and anatomical measurements for a healthy subject and patient with Chiari I malformation. CFD was used to simulate the CSF motion and compared to the 4D PCMRI measurements. Four-dimensional PCMRI measurements had much greater CSF velocities compared to CFD simulations (1.4 to 5.6× greater). Four-dimensional PCMRI and CFD both showed anterior and anterolateral dominance of CSF velocities, although this flow feature was more pronounced in 4D PCMRI measurements compared to CFD. CSF flow jets were present near the nerve rootlets and denticulate ligaments (NRDL) in the CFD simulation. Flow jets were visible in the 4D PCMRI measurements, although they were not clearly attributable to nerve rootlets. Inclusion of spinal cord NRDL in the cervical SSS does not fully explain the differences between velocities obtained from 4D PCMRI measurements and CFD simulations.

Keywords:Cerebral blood flow Cerebrospinal fluid dynamics Spinal subarachnoid space Cerebral autoregulation Cervical spine Continuous positive airway pressure Sleep apnea Intrathoracic pressure Craniospinal compliance PtcCO 2 2D phase-contrast MRI Purpose: To investigate the impact of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) applied by a full-face fitted mask at 15 cmH 2 O on total cerebral blood flow (tCBF), jugular venous flow (tJVF) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) flow. Materials and methods: Axial 2D phase-contrast MRI measurements were acquired at the C2-C3 vertebral level for 23 healthy male awake subjects at baseline (without) and with CPAP applied. CSF flow was quantified within the spinal subarachnoid space and tCBF was quantified based on the summation of blood flow within the left and right internal carotid and vertebral arteries. tJVF was quantified based on the summation of blood flow within the left and right jugular veins. Heart rate, transcutaneous carbon dioxide (PtcCO 2 ) and oxygen saturation were continuously monitored during the MR protocol. Results: CPAP decreased the pulse amplitude (PtPPA) of tJVF by 21% (p = 0.004). CSF stroke volume (SV) and PtPPA also decreased by 20% (p = 0.003) and 15% (p = 0.005), respectively. Change in tCBF SV and PtPPA was not significant. However, the timing of maximum systolic tCBF occurred significantly earlier under CPAP. CSF flow and tJVF waveforms showed significant spatial and temporal differences in waveform feature points, and spectral analysis revealed a decrease in the first harmonic of tJVF under CPAP (p = 0.001). Under CPAP, a 5% decrease in PtcCO 2 (p = 0.003) and 9% increase in HR (p = 0.006) were measured. However, these HR and PtcCO 2 changes were not correlated with any changes in arterial, venous or CSF flow dynamics. Conclusion: Application of CPAP via a full-fitted mask at 15 cm H 2 O was found to have a significant effect on intracranial venous outflow and spinal CSF flow at the C2 vertebral level in healthy adult-age awake volunteers. CPAP can be used to non-invasively provoke changes in intracranial and CSF flow dynamics.