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Updated: May 26, 2026
A Volumetric Method for Quantification of Cerebral Vasospasm in a Murine Model of Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
Published on: July 28, 2018
Vessel wall MRI to differentiate between reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome and central nervous system
Daniel M Mandell1, Charles C Matouk, Richard I Farb
1Division of Neuroradiology, Toronto Western Hospital and the University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Background And Purpose:
Prospective differentiation between reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome and central nervous system vasculitis can be challenging. We hypothesized that high-resolution vessel wall MRI would demonstrate arterial wall enhancement in central nervous system vasculitis but not in reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome.
Methods:
We identified all patients with multifocal segmental narrowing of large intracranial arteries who had high-resolution vessel wall MRI and follow-up angiography at our institute over a 4-year period and performed a detailed chart review.
Results:
Three patients lacked arterial wall enhancement, and these all had reversal of arterial narrowing within 3 months. Four patients demonstrated arterial wall enhancement, and these had persistent or progressive arterial narrowing at a median follow-up of 17 months (range, 6-36 months) with final diagnoses of central nervous system vasculitis (3) and cocaine vasculopathy (1).
Conclusions:
Preliminary results suggest that high-resolution contrast-enhanced vessel wall MRI may enable differentiation between reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome and central nervous system vasculitis.
