Hippocampal sclerosis in temporal lobe epilepsy: findings at 7 T¹

To determine if ultrahigh-field-strength magnetic resonance (MR) imaging can be used to detect subregional hippocampal alterations.

Subjects provided written consent to participate in this prospective institutional review board-approved HIPAA-compliant study. T1- and T2-weighted 7-T brain MR images were acquired in 11 healthy subjects and eight patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). In all subjects, images were qualitatively examined for evidence of hippocampal atrophy, signal change, and malrotation with the Bernasconi definition, and digitations of the hippocampal heads were counted (agreement was measured with the κ statistic). Data were analyzed quantitatively with manual subregional hippocampal body segmentation. Subregional data in individual subjects with TLE were compared with data in control subjects to detect deviation from the control range for volume measures on each side and with asymmetry indexes.

All eight patients with TLE had hippocampal abnormalities on the epileptogenic side. Subregional analysis revealed selective lateral Ammon horn atrophy in six patients and diffuse Ammon horn and dentate gyrus atrophy in one patient. Paucity of hippocampal digitations occurred on the epileptogenic side in all patients with TLE and also on the contralateral side in three patients (interrater κ value, 0.80). Hippocampal malrotation was observed in three patients with TLE and four control subjects.

Ultrahigh-field-strength MR imaging permitted detection of selectively greater Ammon horn atrophy in patients with TLE and hippocampal sclerosis. Paucity of digitations is a deformity of the hippocampal head that was detected independent of hippocampal atrophy in patients with mesial TLE.