Journal of neuroimaging : official journal of the American Society of Neuroimaging
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Incomplete hippocampal inversion (IHI) is an atypical anatomical pattern presented by the hippocampus. It is associated with several neuropathological conditions and is thought to be a factor of susceptibility to hippocampal sclerosis and loss of volume. The volume loss of hippocampus is an inevitable consequence of aging, and when accelerated it is commonly considered an imaging biomarker of Alzheimer's disease dementia. ⋯ The rates of IHI prevalence in the current cohort are similar to those previously reported in healthy cohorts. The IHI severity is related to hippocampal subfield volumes, most notably the CA1, which is a novel finding with potential implications in research on aging and dementia.
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Brain death determination (BDD) is primarily a clinical diagnosis, where death is defined as the permanent loss of brainstem function. In scenarios where clinical examinations are inaccurate, ancillary imaging tests are required. The choice of ancillary imaging test is variable, but the common denominator for all of them is to establish a lack of cerebral blood flow. The purpose of this study was to compare the diagnostic accuracy and interrater reliability of different ancillary imaging tests used for BDD. ⋯ The uses of ancillary imaging tests for BDD are increasing. Within this study's limitations, CTP followed by radionuclide scan were found to be the most accurate and reliable ancillary imaging test for BDD.
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Surgery is the first choice therapeutic approach in case of drug-resistant epilepsy. Unfortunately, up to 43% of patients referred for presurgical assessment do not have a lesion detectable by routine 3T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (MRI-negative), although most of them likely have an underlying epileptogenic lesion. Thus, new MRI modalities with increased sensibility for epileptogenic lesions are required. This paper describes the magnetization-prepared two rapid acquisition gradient echoes (MP2RAGE) and susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI) findings at 7T in a series of patients with drug-resistant epilepsy of different etiologies. ⋯ MRI at ultra-high field is very promising for the detection of inconspicuous epileptogenic lesions and may facilitate epilepsy surgery of a great number of to-date MRI-negative patients.
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The purpose of this review is to provide an update on technology related to Transcranial Color Coded Doppler Examinations. Microvascularization (MicroV) is an emerging Power Doppler technology which can allow visualization of low and weak blood flows even at high depths, thus providing a suitable technique for transcranial ultrasound analysis. With MicroV, reconstruction of the vessel shape can be improved, without any overestimation. ⋯ In further neurosonology technology development efforts, attempts have been made to address morphology issues and overcome technical limitations. The use of contrast agents has helped in this regard by introducing harmonics and subtraction software, which allowed better morphological studies of vessels, due to their increased signal-to-noise ratio. Having no limitations in the learning curve, in time and contrast agent techniques, and due to its high signal-to-noise ratio, MicroV has shown great potential to obtain the best morphological definition.
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Stent retrievers have revolutionized endovascular treatment of acute ischemic stroke (AIS). Animal studies showed that mechanical thrombectomy (MT) may cause endothelial injury and intimal layer edema. Using transcranial color-coded duplex-sonography (TCCS) we observed postprocedural hemodynamic changes in the treated vessel. ⋯ Our TCCS study provides preliminary evidence of focal acceleration of blood flow velocities after MT. Without residual stenosis or vasospasm, this may be a sign of endothelial layer disruption/intimal injury. Further studies are needed to confirm our results.