Diffusion Tensor Imaging without Complex Statistical Analysis Could Be Helpful for Diagnosis

Abstract

Objective: Thanks to fast developing technology, visualization of fiber tracts at brain is possible. But with the new developments, data processing and interpretation are becoming more difficult. Actually interpretations in these fields are mostly in-group analysis and are generally not useful on the basis of individual patient evaluations. In these regards, we investigated our cases with diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and tried to show if the data could be interpreted simply by radiologist’s eye or not. Material: Our study consisted of 31 cases that were evaluated in our center with 3 Tesla Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) units. Cranial DTI studies performed for ischemia, posttraumatic axonal injury, congenital malformation, neoplasia, autism, mental retardation and epilepsy. Cranial DTI was performed to demonstrate effected fiber tracts in neoplasia and ischemia cases and was applied to identify any gross anomaly in microstructural anatomy beside normal conventional MRI in other cases. DTI images were evaluated, along with fused conventional T1 weighted 3D high-resolution images and FA maps. DTI were performed at the first administration of the patients. Results: In addition to chronic ischemic focuses in patients with ischemia, DTI-FA images showed us relevant signal changes secondary to Wallerian degeneration in two cases. In traumatic brain injury cases, though being isointense on conventional sequences, FA values showed decreased values at the levels of the axonal discontinuity. Major abnormalities of association and projection fibers in congenital malformation cases were visualized at both 3D-DTI fused images and FA map images. Displacement, infiltration, destruction fibers were clearly visualized in neoplasia cases. However, any objective abnormality wasn’t reported at any cases diagnosed with motor mental retardation, epilepsy or neuropsychiatric diseases. Conclusion: Colored DTI images and FA maps are helpful in the way of diagnosis in most cases with organic pathologies; it is possible to obtain diagnostic information by vivacious images.