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Quantifying response to intracranial pressure normalization in idiopathic intracranial hypertension via dynamic
Svetlana Lublinsky1, Anat Kesler2, Alon Friedman1,3
1Departments of Brain & Cognitive Sciences, Physiology & Cell Biology, Faculty of Health Science, Zlotowski Center for Neuroscience, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel.
Background:
Idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) is characterized by elevated intracranial pressure without a clear cause.
Purpose:
To investigate dynamic imaging findings in IIH and their relation to mechanisms underlying intracranial pressure normalization.
Study Type:
Prospective.
Population:
Eighteen IIH patients and 30 healthy controls.
Field Strength/Sequence:
T1 -weighted, venography, fluid attenuation inversion recovery, and apparent diffusion coefficients were acquired on 1.5T scanner.
Assessment:
The dural sinus was measured before and after lumbar puncture (LP). The degree of sinus occlusion was evaluated, based on 95% confidence intervals of controls. We studied a number of neuroimaging biomarkers associated with IIH (sinus occlusion; optic nerve; distribution of cerebrospinal fluid into the subarachnoid space, sulci and lateral ventricles (LVs); Meckel's caves; arachnoid granulation; pituitary and choroid plexus), before and after LP, using a set of specially developed quantification techniques.
Statistical Tests:
Relationships among various biomarkers were investigated (Pearson correlation coefficient) and linked to long-term disease outcomes (logistic regression). The t-test and the Wilcoxon rank test were used to compare between controls and before and after LP data.
Results:
As a result of LP, the following were found to be in good accordance with the opening pressure: relative compression of cerebrospinal fluid (R = -0.857, P < 0.001) and brain volumes (R = -0.576, P = 0.012), LV expansion (R = 0.772, P < 0.001) and venous volume (R = 0.696, P = 0.001), enlargement of the pituitary (R = 0.640, P = 0.023), and shrinkage of subarachnoid space (R = -0.887, P < 0.001). The only parameter that had an impact on long-term prognosis was cross-sectional size of supplemental drainage veins after LP (sensitivity of 92%, specificity of 20%, and area under the curve of 0.845, P < 0.001).
Data Conclusion:
We present an approach for quantitative characterization of the intracranial venous system and its implementation as a diagnostic assistance tool. We conclude that formation of supplementary drainage veins might serve as a long-lasting compensatory mechanism.
Level Of Evidence:
2 Technical Efficacy: Stage 3 J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2018;47:913-927.
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Increased Intracranial Pressure l: Introduction
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