Neuroimaging clinics of North America
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The field of statistics makes valuable contributions to functional neuroimaging research by establishing procedures for the design and conduct of neuroimaging experiments and providing tools for objectively quantifying and measuring the strength of scientific evidence provided by the data. Two common functional neuroimaging research objectives include detecting brain regions that reveal task-related alterations in measured brain activity (activations) and identifying highly correlated brain regions that exhibit similar patterns of activity over time (functional connectivity). This article highlights various statistical procedures for analyzing data from activation studies and functional connectivity studies, focusing on functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) data. Also discussed are emerging statistical methods for prediction using fMRI and PET data, which stand to increase the translational significance of functional neuroimaging data to clinical practice.
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Atherosclerotic plaque at the carotid bifurcation is the primary cause of ischemic strokes and the degree of carotid stenosis is strongly associated with stroke risk in symptomatic patients. Stroke is the third-leading cause of death in the United States, constituting approximately 700,000 cases each year. ⋯ Early to more advanced progressive lesions of the carotid are categorized, based on descriptive morphologic events originally cited for the coronary circulation. The histologic features associated with symptomatic and asymptomatic carotid disease are also addressed, along with the issues surrounding current stent-based therapies for the prevention of major recurrent vascular events.
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Recent advances in pediatric neurosurgery have drastically improved the outcome in infants and children afflicted with surgical lesions of the central nervous system (CNS). Because most of these techniques were first applied to adults, the physiologic and developmental differences that are inherent in pediatric patients present challenges to neurosurgeons and anesthesiologists alike. The aim of this paper is to highlight these age-dependent approaches to the pediatric neurosurgical patient.
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Different types of malformations share a dilated vein of Galen, but only one of them is a true vein of Galen aneurysmal malformation (VGAM). The optimal window of opportunity for treatment is between 4 and 5 years of months [corrected], because this allows the child to grow and mature. ⋯ The transvenous approach carries significantly elevated morbidity and mortality and is rarely indicated. Anatomic cure of the VGAM is not the main goal of treatment; the ultimate goal is control of the malformation to allow the brain to mature and develop normally.
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Neuroimaging Clin. N. Am. · Feb 2007
ReviewDemyelinating and infectious diseases of the spinal cord.
Spinal cord diseases generally have distinctive clinical findings that reflect dysfunction of particular sensory or motor tracts. The abnormalities on MR images reflect the pathologic changes that occur in the affected pathways. The complexity and the wide spectrum of diseases affecting the spinal cord require a profound knowledge of neuropathology and exactly tuned imaging strategies. This article describes and illustrates the clinical and imaging characteristics in various demyelinating and infectious conditions of the spinal cord.