Magnetic resonance imaging of brain injury in the high-risk term infant

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is noninvasive and nonionizing and offers excellent soft-tissue contrast and good spatial resolution, providing anatomical detail that cannot be obtained by any other imaging modality. In this review, we discuss the imaging findings in perinatal arterial stroke, hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, metabolic abnormalities, and infection. Conventional imaging can detect patterns of injury that relate to the etiology and timing of an insult and provide valuable information about prognosis. In many cases, diffusion-weighted imaging provides additional information to conventional MRI, and we recommend its use in all clinical MRI investigations. We also consider the utility of tools such as functional MRI, diffusion tensor imaging, and diffusion tractography in the neonatal population.