Abstract
PurposeThe treatment strategy is different for acute traumatic peripheral nerve injury and acute compressive neuropathy. This study aimed to compare magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features of acute traumatic peripheral nerve injury and acute compressive neuropathy in a rat model.Materials and methodsTwenty female Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into two groups. In the crush injury group (n = 10), the unilateral sciatic nerve was crushed using forceps to represent acute traumatic peripheral nerve injury. In the compression injury group (n = 10), the unilateral sciatic nerve was ligated using silk to represent acute compressive neuropathy. The MRI of eight rats from each group were acquired on postoperative days 3 and 10. Fat-suppressed T2-weighted images were acquired. Changes in the injured nerve were divided into three grades. A Fisher’s exact test was used to compare the changes in the nerves of the two groups. Histological staining and a western blot analysis were performed on one rat in each group on day 3. Neurofilament, myelin basic protein (MBP), and p75NTR staining were performed. Expression of neurofilament, MBP, p75NTR, and c-jun was evaluated by western blot analysis.ResultsMR neurography revealed substantial nerve changes in the compression injury group compared with the crush injury group at two-time points (p = 0.001 on day 3, p = 0.026 on day 10). The histopathological analysis indicated the destruction of the axon and myelin, mainly at the injury site and the distal portion of the injury in the crush injury group. It was prominent in the proximal portion, the injury site, and the distal portion of the injury in the compression injury group. The degree of axonal and myelin destruction was more pronounced in the compression injury group than in the crush injury group.ConclusionMR neurography showed prominent and long-segmental changes associated with the injured nerve in acute compressive neuropathy compared with acute traumatic peripheral nerve injury.
Highlights
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a useful modality for the clinical diagnosis and surgical planning of peripheral nerve disorders [1,2,3,4,5,6,7]
MR neurography revealed substantial nerve changes in the compression injury group compared with the crush injury group at two-time points (p = 0.001 on day 3, p = 0.026 on day 10)
MR neurography (MRN) is an advanced imaging technique that directly reveals the peripheral nerve with high contrast and high resolution
Summary
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a useful modality for the clinical diagnosis and surgical planning of peripheral nerve disorders [1,2,3,4,5,6,7]. The most important roles of MRI include detection of causative space-occupying lesions such as neoplasm, hematoma, and bony fragments in peripheral neuropathy and determination of the changes in denervated muscles that indirectly reflect nerve injury [2]. The use of MRN for early and differential diagnosis of peripheral neuropathy has recently increased [1,2,3, 6, 11,12,13,14]. Further studies analyzing the MRN features of different types of peripheral neuropathy are necessary for differential diagnosis
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
