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The echogenic ependymal wall in intraventricular hemorrhage: sonographic-pathologic correlation
G Gaisie1, M S Roberts, T W Bouldin
1Department of Radiology, UNC School of Medicine, Chapel Hill.
Pediatric Radiology
|January 1, 1990
Summary
Ependymal echogenicity, a sign of intraventricular hemorrhage in newborns, was observed in 41 of 51 infants. This ultrasound finding, linked to glial cell proliferation, typically appears seven days post-hemorrhage.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal Neurology
- Pediatric Radiology
- Neuroimaging
Background:
- Intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) is a common complication in premature infants.
- Ependymal echogenicity on ultrasound has been noted in infants with IVH but its significance is not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the presence and characteristics of ependymal echogenicity in newborns with severe intraventricular hemorrhage (Grades III and IV).
- To correlate ultrasound findings of ependymal echogenicity with histological examination.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of 51 newborns diagnosed with Grades III and IV intraventricular hemorrhage via ultrasound.
- Serial ultrasound studies were performed to monitor for ependymal echogenicity.
- Correlation with histological findings from six autopsy cases.
Main Results:
- Ependymal echogenicity was detected in 41 out of 51 infants (80%) with intraventricular hemorrhage.
- The echogenicity typically appeared around seven days after the hemorrhage and resolved within approximately six weeks.
- Histology revealed proliferating subependymal glial cells on the ventricular surface in cases with ependymal echogenicity.
Conclusions:
- Ependymal echogenicity is a common ultrasound finding in newborns with severe intraventricular hemorrhage.
- The presence of ependymal echogenicity is likely due to the proliferation of subependymal glial cells.
- This finding may serve as a potential imaging biomarker for specific pathological changes following neonatal intraventricular hemorrhage.