SPINAL CORD DIFFUSION TENSOR IMAGING (DTI), ITS APPLICATION AND LIMITATIONS

Abstract

In future, fiber tracking and DTI indices may help the surgeon to determine their surgical approach. Correlation between quantitative diffusion measures, such as FA and ADC, and acute or chronic injuries of the spinal cord may be useful to predict outcome and monitor the response to treatment. Spinal cord injury results in functional disabilities in patients. it is important to develop a noninvasive imaging technique for early evaluation of spinal cord integrity after injury, X-ray and better CT are useful in delineating bony details and are important in preoperative planning , Magnetic resonant imaging (MRI) is the method of choice for detection and diagnosis of many disorders in the spine because of its inherent sensitivity to subtle soft tissue changes and its capability to displaying long segment of vertebral column in one examination. In the context of trauma MRI can detect ligamentous injury and internal derangement of the spinal cord.Diffusion weighted MRI promises to add to the diagnostic specificity of MRI in the spine. Based on its ability to depict the microscopic motion of water protons, DWI can be used to sensitize image contrast to microstructural changes and thus can provide important information complimentary to regular MRI sequences DWI provides important biological information about the composition of tissues, their physical properties, their microstructure, and their architectural organization. Keyword: SCI-DWI- DTI-ADV