| Abstract | Purpose: To use spinal cord diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) for investigating human cervical funiculi, acquire axial diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data with an in-plane resolution sufficient to delineate subquadrants within the spinal cord, obtain corresponding DTI metrics, and assess potential regional differences. Materials and Methods: Healthy volunteers were studied with a 3 T Siemens Trio MRI scanner. DTI data were acquired using a single-shot spin echo EPI sequence. The spatial resolution allowed for the delineation of regions of interest (ROIs) in the ventral, dorsal, and lateral spinal cord funiculi. ROI-based and tractography-based analyses were performed. Results: Significant fractional anisotropy (FA) differences were found between ROIs in the dorsal and ventral funiculi (P = 0.0001), dorsal and lateral funiculi (P = 0.015), and lateral and ventral funiculi (P = 0.0002). Transverse diffusivity was significantly different between ROIs in the ventral and dorsal funiculi (P = 0.003) and the ventral and lateral funiculi (P = 0.004). Tractography-based quantifications revealed DTI parameter regional differences that were generally consistent with the ROI-based analysis. Conclusion: Original contributions are: 1) the use of a tractography-based method to quantify DTI metrics in the human cervical spinal cord, and 2) reported DTI values in various funiculi at 3 T. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2010;31:829–837. ©2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. |
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