Diffusion Tensor Imaging Study In Spinal Cord Space-occupying Lesion

Objective:To observe the diffusion tensor imageing (DTI) appearance in the normal adult's and the spinal cord space-occupying lesion (including benign tumor, malignant tumor) and other's vertebral canal space-occupying lesion, to investigate the application value of the DTI in the diagnosis the inside of vertebral canal benign or malignant space-occupying lesion.Methods:Study were performde on Siemens Magnetom Trio Tim 3.0T MR scanner syste:1. 20 healthy volunteer were scanned by routine T1WI,T2WI,fluid attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR), diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) sequence, the FA vaule of health adult crowd myeloid were obtained and analysed , and were quantitively measured the FA of correspond centrum ,the common spinal cord nerve conduction tract picture and FA value picture were provided.2. patient with the intravertebral canal space-occupying lesion were scanned by routine T1WI, T2WI, contrast enhancement scanning, FLIAR,DTI and MPRAGE sequence, the nerve conduction tract of diseased region were observed, FA value of diseased region were also analyed. The experiment research the dominance of DTI that were discriminated the benign tumor or malignant tumor, the inside or outside of spinal cord space-occupying lesion.Results:1. The cervicum cord, thoracic cord segments ,above conus medullaris of healthy volunteer were showed clearly by DTI technique. After image processing, the portait nerve conduction tract were taken on blue,and the transversal nerve root were taken on red, the FA mean value of each correspond centrum's nerve conduction tract were measured .2. The extra-spinal cord epidural space-occupying lesion: In the cold abscess of tubercle , the nerve conduction tract were compressed and distorted by DTI scanning, there was no difference in the FA value among the perimeter and normal spinal cord identical position.3. The intra-spinal cord tumor (including hemangioma, dermoid cyst, epithelial cyst, teratoma), resulted in the distortion of the spinal cord beam, the FA value were lightly upgrade when it was compressed obviously, because of the fiber compactly arrayed. The malignant tumor (neurospongioma and ependymoma) destroyed the normal nerve conduction tract, the FA value of corticospinal tract were significantly lower than the healthy volunteer.Results:Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) was used as a routine MR imaging, which reflected the change of nerve conduction tract's anatomic pattern.. DTI technique was a Non-Invasive, non-radiated, easy gained nerve conduction tract MR imaging technique. At present DTI technique were applied widespread on intracranial lesion, but the group's data displayed ,that DTI technique could detect the change of FA value to diagnose the spinal cord epidural space-occupying lesion, and volantly response the destroy of nerve conduction tract, which could use in the diagnosis of the benign tumor, malignant tumor, nerves morphous,the evaluation between the tumor and normal tissue , nervous system. DTI technique could provide the visualized operation guide for neurosurgery.