Premium
Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopic Imaging Detects Abnormalities in Normal‐Appearing Frontal Lobe of Patients With Sturge‐Weber Syndrome
Author(s) -
Batista Carlos E. A.,
Chugani Harry T.,
Hu Jiani,
Haacke E. Mark,
Behen Michael E.,
Helder Emily J.,
Juhász Csaba
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
journal of neuroimaging
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.822
H-Index - 64
eISSN - 1552-6569
pISSN - 1051-2284
DOI - 10.1111/j.1552-6569.2007.00207.x
Subject(s) - sturge–weber syndrome , medicine , magnetic resonance imaging , frontal lobe , radiology , temporal lobe , nuclear magnetic resonance , epilepsy , dermatology , psychiatry , physics
BACKGROUND In Sturge‐Weber syndrome (SWS), structural MRI abnormalities are most common in the posterior brain regions. Frontal lobe involvement increases the risk of motor impairment. The goal of this study was to determine whether Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopic Imaging (MRSI) can improve detection of frontal lobe involvement in children with SWS.METHODS Sixteen children (age: .9‐10.4 years) with unilateral SWS underwent MRI with MRSI prospectively. N‐acetyl‐aspartate (NAA) and choline asymmetries in the posterior and frontal regions were measured.RESULTS Eight children presented normal‐appearing frontal lobes on conventional MRI, but 7 of them showed abnormal NAA and/or choline content in the frontal lobe of the affected hemisphere. Lower frontal lobe gray matter NAA was associated with earlier onset of seizures ( r = .76; P = .04) and impaired motor function ( r =−.89, P < .001). Frontal NAA asymmetry was an independent predictor of motor function in a regression analysis ( P = .01)CONCLUSION MRSI is more sensitive than conventional structural MRI for detection of frontal lobe involvement in SWS. Decreased frontal lobe NAA is an excellent predictor of motor functions. Thus, MRSI can provide complementary information for the assessment of normal‐appearing brain regions, and may assist prognosis evaluation in children with SWS.