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Published on: January 29, 2018
Age-related distribution of vertebral bone-marrow diffusivity
Jochen Herrmann1, Nina Krstin, Bjoern P Schoennagel
1Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Martinistraße 52, D-20246 Hamburg, Germany. j.herrmann@uke.de
European Journal of Radiology
|September 29, 2012
Summary
Lumbar bone marrow apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values decrease with age, reflecting cellular changes during marrow conversion. This study quantified these age-related diffusivity changes in 88 individuals.
Area of Science:
- Radiology
- Biomedical Imaging
- Bone Marrow Imaging
Background:
- Bone marrow composition changes with age.
- Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) can assess tissue microstructure.
- Apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) quantifies water molecule diffusion.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine age-related diffusivity changes in lumbar bone marrow.
- To measure apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values in the lumbar spine.
- To correlate ADC values with chronological age.
Main Methods:
- 88 individuals (0-84 years) underwent echo-planar DWI with b-values of 50, 400, and 800 s/mm(2).
- ADC values were calculated and measured in the 1st and 2nd lumbar vertebral bodies.
- Spearman's rho test analyzed the correlation between age and ADC values.
Main Results:
- Lumbar bone marrow ADC values showed a significant negative correlation with age (rho=-0.398, p=0.001).
- Mean ADC values were 0.54 ± 0.07 ×10(-3)mm(2)/s for ages 0-29 and 0.47 ± 0.08 ×10(-3)mm(2)/s for ages 30-88 (p<0.001).
- No significant difference in ADC values was observed between children and young adults.
Conclusions:
- Lumbar bone marrow ADC values linearly decrease with increasing age.
- ADC values reflect the gradual changes in cell composition during bone marrow conversion.
- DWI is a valuable tool for assessing age-related changes in bone marrow.
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