Role of MRI Diffusion Tensor Imaging in early diagnosis of Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy (CSM)

Abstract

Cervical compressive myelopathy represents a clinico-radiological challenge due to the mismatch between the patients’ presentations and the conventional MR findings caused by its lack of detection of detailed cervical cord microstructural changes. Although conventional MRI is the gold standard for radiographic evaluation, it has a limited application for determining prognosis and recovery. In the last decade, Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) parameters which are based on the preferential diffusion of water molecules, provide a promising imaging technique in the detection and evaluation of early spondylotic myelopathy changes before its establishment in conventional T2 images of MRI. In our study we correlated the FA values of the cervical cord opposite normal disc, affected disc and below affected disc levels.