Quantitative MRI of rostral spinal cord and brain regions is predictive of 
functional recovery in acute spinal cord injury

Seif, Maryam; Curt, Armin; Thompson, Alan J.; Grabher, Patrick; Weiskopf, Nikolaus; Freund, Patrick

doi:10.1016/j.nicl.2018.08.026

Item

ITEM ACTIONSEXPORT

Add to Basket

Local TagsRelease HistoryDetailsSummary

Released

Journal Article

Quantitative MRI of rostral spinal cord and brain regions is predictive of functional recovery in acute spinal cord injury

MPS-Authors

Seif, Maryam
Balgrist Spinal Cord Injury Center, Balgrist University Hospital, Zurich, Switzerland;
Department Neurophysics (Weiskopf), MPI for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons147461

Weiskopf, Nikolaus
Department Neurophysics (Weiskopf), MPI for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Max Planck Society;
Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, United Kingdom;

/persons/resource/persons188373

Freund, Patrick
Balgrist Spinal Cord Injury Center, Balgrist University Hospital, Zurich, Switzerland;
Department Neurophysics (Weiskopf), MPI for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Max Planck Society;
Department of Brain Repair & Rehabilitation, University College London, United Kingdom;
Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, United Kingdom;

External Resource

No external resources are shared

Fulltext (restricted access)

There are currently no full texts shared for your IP range.

Fulltext (public)

Seif_2018.pdf
(Publisher version), 2MB

Supplementary Material (public)

There is no public supplementary material available

Citation

Seif, M., Curt, A., Thompson, A. J., Grabher, P., Weiskopf, N., & Freund, P. (2018). Quantitative MRI of rostral spinal cord and brain regions is predictive of functional recovery in acute spinal cord injury. NeuroImage: Clinical, 20, 556-563. doi:10.1016/j.nicl.2018.08.026.

Cite as: https://hdl.handle.net/21.11116/0000-0002-120C-D

Abstract

Objective: To reveal the immediate extent of trauma-induced neurodegenerative changes rostral to the level of lesion and determine the predictive clinical value of quantitative MRI (qMRI) following acute spinal cord injury (SCI). Methods: Twenty-four acute SCI patients and 23 healthy controls underwent a high-resolution T1-weighted protocol. Eighteen of those patients and 20 of controls additionally underwent a multi-parameter mapping (MPM) MRI protocol sensitive to the content of tissue structure, including myelin and iron. Patients were examined clinically at baseline, 2, 6, 12, and 24 months post-SCI. We assessed volume and microstructural changes in the spinal cord and brain using T1-weighted MRI, magnetization transfer (MT), longitudinal relaxation rate (R1), and effective transverse relaxation rate (R2*) maps. Regression analysis determined associations between acute qMRI parameters and recovery. Results: At baseline, cord area and its anterior-posterior width were decreased in patients, whereas MT, R1, and R2* parameters remained unchanged in the cord. Within the cerebellum, volume decrease was paralleled by increases of MT and R2* parameters. Early grey matter changes were observed within the primary motor cortex and limbic system. Importantly, early volume and microstructural changes of the cord and cerebellum predicted functional recovery following injury. Conclusions: Neurodegenerative changes rostral to the level of lesion occur early in SCI, with varying temporal and spatial dynamics. Early qMRI markers of spinal cord and cerebellum are predictive of functional recovery. These neuroimaging biomarkers may supplement clinical assessments and provide insights into the potential of therapeutic interventions to enhance neural plasticity.