MR tractography with diffusion tensor imaging in clinical routine

Abstract

Using MRI, we demonstrated that the depiction of the cerebral white matter fiber tracts has become a routine procedure. Diffusion tensor (DT) sequences may be analyzed with combined volume analysis and tractography extraction software, giving indirect visualization of white matter connections. We obtained DT data from 20 subjects with normal MR imaging and five patients presenting cerebral diseases such as brain tumors, multiple sclerosis and stroke, with five patients explored on two different MR scanners. Data were transferred to dedicated workstations for anatomical realignment, determination of voxel eigenvectors and calculation of fiber tract orientations in a region of interest. In all subjects, axonal directions underlying the main neuronal pathways could be delineated. Comparisons between diseased regions and contralateral areas demonstrated changes in voxel anisotropy in injured regions, revealing possible preferential fiber orientations within diffuse T2 hyperintensities. Rapid data processing allows imaging of the normal and diseased fiber pathways as part of the routine MRI examination. Therefore, it appears that whenever white matter disease is suspected a tractography can be performed with this fast and simple method that we proved to be reliable and reproducible.

Diffusion-weighted MRI in evaluating liver fibrosis: a feasibility study in cirrhotic patients

“…Alpha-fetoprotein Introduzione La misurazione dei coefficienti di diffusione apparenti (ADC) per mezzo della risonanza magnetica pesata in diffusione (RM DW) rende possibile, in linea teorica, la quantificazione degli effetti della microcircolazione sanguigna (perfusione) e dei moti browniani dell'acqua nel contesto dei tessuti [1,2]. Tale campo di indagine è divenuto oggetto di ricerca clinica intensiva grazie alle applicazioni, ormai stato dell'arte, nel sistema nervoso centrale [3][4][5]. Il ruolo di questa tecnica nell'imaging del fegato è oggetto di dibattito, specie nella caratterizzazione delle lesioni focali epatiche [6][7][8][9].…”

“…It has become a matter for intensive clinical research due to the state-of-the-art applications in the central nervous system [3][4][5]. The role of the technique in liver imaging is under debate, particularly in characterising focal liver lesions [6][7][8][9].…”

Diffusion tensor imaging and tractography of the median nerve in carpal tunnel syndrome: preliminary results

“…DTI with fiber tracking has found clinical applications in the evaluation of the central nervous system [5,[12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19]. Indeed, it is most interesting in tissues with an organized microstructure, such as white matter tracts of the human brain [5].…”

Iv- Les Voies Visuelles : Rappels Anatomo-Fonctionnels

“…Leur déplacement peut coïncider avec l'ensemble des axones neuronaux et de leur gaine de myéline. Cette méthode permet une visualisation indirecte, dans l'espace et in vivo, de l'architecture des voies optiques, des corps géniculés latéraux et des radiations optiques qui, par des méthodes traditionnelles, ne sont pas discernables de la substance blanche [Nguyen et al, 2003].…”