[Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy in transient disorders of the cerebral circulation]

Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy of the brain was performed in 8 patients with asymptomatic carotid stenosis as well as in 26 patients with transient ischemic attacks (TIA) and 19 patients with reversible ischemic neurologic deficiency (RIND). The study was carried out by means of Philips apparatus. The results of investigation were compared with data of spectroscopic examination of 9 older and 10 younger normals. The mathematical analysis of ratio of N-acetylaspartate concentration (NAA) to phosphocholine (Pch), phosphocreatine (Pcr), and lactic acid was used to describe the metabolic changes. As a result lactic acid was not found in control volunteers' brains while it was detected either in the damaged (59%) or in the contralateral (47%) hemispheres of the patients. The significant decrease of NAA/Pch and NAA/Pcr ratios was observed in the pathological hemispheres of the patients. These results testify to high sensitivity of proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy for evaluation of metabolic disturbances in latent or reversible cerebral ischemia.