Retrospective Comparative Analysis of Diffusion Tensor and Constrained Spherical Deconvolution Tractography Models in...

Area of Science:

• Neuroimaging
• Neuroscience
• Medical Physics

Background:

• Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is standard for white matter tractography but assumes single fiber orientation per voxel.
• Constrained spherical deconvolution (CSD) estimates multiple fiber orientations, offering potentially more detailed reconstructions.
• Both DTI and CSD are now available on a neurosurgical navigation platform for direct comparison.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the tract volumes reconstructed by CSD and DTI.
• To assess the impact of tract type on reconstruction differences.
• To evaluate the clinical utility of CSD in neurosurgery.

Main Methods:

• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data from 37 patients were analyzed.
• Five major white matter tracts were reconstructed using both DTI and CSD models.
• Volumetric and visual analyses were performed to quantify differences.

Main Results:

• CSD consistently produced significantly larger tract volumes (mean 158.6% increase, p < 0.001) compared to DTI.
• Visual assessments favored CSD reconstructions in ~80% of cases, showing strong concordance with volumetric data.
• Differences were most pronounced in the inferior fronto-occipital fasciculi; corticospinal tracts showed less variation.

Conclusions:

• CSD significantly enhances white matter tract visualization over DTI, particularly for complex pathways.
• Integrating CSD into clinical navigation can improve preoperative planning and risk assessment in neurosurgery.
• Tract-specific characteristics are key determinants of inter-method differences in reconstruction accuracy.