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Diffusion Tensor Magnetic Resonance Imaging in the Analysis of Neurodegenerative Diseases

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Published on: July 28, 2013

Effect of number of diffusion encoding directions in neonatal diffusion tensor imaging using Tract-Based Spatial

Harri Merisaari^1,2,3, Linnea Karlsson^1,2,4,5, Noora M Scheinin^1,2,5

¹FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, Finland.

The European Journal of Neuroscience

|August 29, 2023

Summary

Fewer diffusion encoding directions in diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) introduce bias in neonatal brain scans. Using 24 or more directions minimizes this bias, ensuring reliable DTI scalar estimates for research.

Keywords:

Tract-Based Spatial Statistics diffusion tensor imaging infant brain imaging

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Area of Science:

Neuroimaging
Developmental Neuroscience
Medical Physics

Background:

Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) is crucial for studying brain development in infants and neonates.
Traditional DTI studies often used limited diffusion encoding directions (e.g., 6), potentially impacting data quality.
Optimizing acquisition time while maintaining DTI data integrity remains a challenge, especially for retrospective analyses.

Purpose of the Study:

To evaluate the impact of varying diffusion encoding directions on DTI scalar estimates in neonatal brain imaging.
To determine the minimum number of directions required for reliable DTI analysis in neonates.

Main Methods:

Analysis of DTI images from 133 neonates, with data quality controlled to 54 directions.
Systematic evaluation of DTI scalars using Tract-Based Spatial Statistics (TBSS) with varying numbers of diffusion directions (6 to 54 in increments of 6).
Extraction of mean Region of Interest (ROI) values using the JHU atlas to assess scalar differences.

Main Results:

Significant bias in fractional anisotropy (FA), mean diffusivity (MD), axial diffusivity (AD), and radial diffusivity (RD) was observed with only 6 directions.
Using 24 or more diffusion directions resulted in negligible differences compared to 54 directions.
Voxel-wise analysis revealed notable differences with 6, 12, and 18 directions compared to 54 directions.

Conclusions:

DTI studies using fewer than 24 diffusion directions may introduce significant bias in neonatal brain scalar estimates.
At least 24 diffusion directions are recommended for reliable DTI analysis in neonates to ensure comparability with higher-direction datasets.
These findings inform best practices for DTI acquisition in infant neuroimaging research.