[Bio-imaging for the study of organic changes in the C.N.S.: comparison between computerized tomography and magnetic...

Several comparative studies have been carried out in order to evaluate the possible diagnostic superiority of Computed Tomography (C.T.) vs. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (M.R.I.) in different diseases of the Central Nervous System. The present investigation is aimed at critically revising this problem also including the study of patients clinical data as a criterion of choice. A sample of 69 subjects was examined. It was seen that in demyelinative as well as in chronic cerebrovascular diseases M.R.I. should be preferred because of its higher sensitivity and specificity. Concerning specifically chronic cerebrovascular diseases, clinical data can have a more significant role in justifying the choice of M.R.I. C.T., and M.R.I. should be considered as complementary rather than competitive in studying cerebral tumors and spinal cord pathology; the planning of surgical operations, needing a complete evaluation of data, which in these cases are very variable, requires the use of both methods.