TY - JOUR

T1 - Application of the T1w/T2w mapping technique for spinal cord assessment in patients with degenerative cervical myelopathy

AU - Filimonova, Elena

AU - Letyagin, Vladimir

AU - Zaitsev, Boris

AU - Kubetsky, Yulij

AU - Rzaev, Jamil

N1 - © 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to International Spinal Cord Society.

PY - 2024/1

Y1 - 2024/1

N2 - STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective case-control study.OBJECTIVES: To investigate signal changes on T1w/T2w signal intensity ratio maps within cervical cord in patients with degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM).SETTING: Novosibirsk Neurosurgery Center, Russia.METHODS: A total of 261 patients with DCM and 42 age- and sex-matched healthy controls were evaluated using the T1w/T2w mapping method and spinal cord automatic morphometry. The T1w/T2w signal intensity ratio, which reflects white matter integrity, and the spinal cord cross-sectional area (CSA) were calculated and compared between the patients and the controls. In patients with DCM, the correlations between these parameters and neurological scores were also evaluated.RESULTS: The regional T1w/T2w ratio values from the cervical spinal cord at the level of maximal compression in patients with DCM were significantly lower than those in healthy controls (p < 0.001), as were the regional CSA values (p < 0.001). There was a positive correlation between the regional values of the T1w/T2w ratio and the values of the CSA at the level of maximal spinal cord compression.CONCLUSIONS: T1w/T2w mapping revealed that spinal cord tissue damage exists at the level of maximal compression in patients with DCM in association with spinal cord atrophy according to automatic morphometry. These changes were correlated with each other.

AB - STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective case-control study.OBJECTIVES: To investigate signal changes on T1w/T2w signal intensity ratio maps within cervical cord in patients with degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM).SETTING: Novosibirsk Neurosurgery Center, Russia.METHODS: A total of 261 patients with DCM and 42 age- and sex-matched healthy controls were evaluated using the T1w/T2w mapping method and spinal cord automatic morphometry. The T1w/T2w signal intensity ratio, which reflects white matter integrity, and the spinal cord cross-sectional area (CSA) were calculated and compared between the patients and the controls. In patients with DCM, the correlations between these parameters and neurological scores were also evaluated.RESULTS: The regional T1w/T2w ratio values from the cervical spinal cord at the level of maximal compression in patients with DCM were significantly lower than those in healthy controls (p < 0.001), as were the regional CSA values (p < 0.001). There was a positive correlation between the regional values of the T1w/T2w ratio and the values of the CSA at the level of maximal spinal cord compression.CONCLUSIONS: T1w/T2w mapping revealed that spinal cord tissue damage exists at the level of maximal compression in patients with DCM in association with spinal cord atrophy according to automatic morphometry. These changes were correlated with each other.

KW - Case-Control Studies

KW - Cervical Cord/diagnostic imaging

KW - Cervical Vertebrae/diagnostic imaging

KW - Humans

KW - Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods

KW - Retrospective Studies

KW - Spinal Cord Compression/diagnostic imaging

KW - Spinal Cord Diseases/diagnostic imaging

KW - Spinal Cord Injuries

KW - Spinal Cord/diagnostic imaging

UR - https://www.scopus.com/record/display.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85175537360&origin=inward&txGid=96c4df04018a2385cb90a385be879a58

UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/222eeb7c-45b6-359e-8047-585e44f7b6eb/

U2 - 10.1038/s41393-023-00941-y

DO - 10.1038/s41393-023-00941-y

M3 - Article

C2 - 37919382

VL - 62

SP - 6

EP - 11

JO - Spinal cord

JF - Spinal cord

SN - 1362-4393

IS - 1

ER -