Validation of an MRI Rating Scale for Amyloid-Related Imaging Abnormalities.

Introduction: Immunotherapeutic agents against amyloid beta (Aβ) are associated with adverse events, including amyloid-related imaging abnormalities with edema and effusion (ARIA-E). Recently, a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) rating scale was developed for ARIA-E detection and classification. The aim of this study was to validate the use of this rating scale in a larger patient group with multiple raters.

Cortical atrophy patterns in multiple sclerosis are non-random and clinically relevant.

Grey matter atrophy is common in multiple sclerosis. However, in contrast with other neurodegenerative diseases, it is unclear whether grey matter atrophy in multiple sclerosis is a diffuse 'global' process or develops, instead, according to distinct anatomical patterns. Using source-based morphometry we searched for anatomical patterns of co-varying cortical thickness and assessed their relationships with white matter pathology, physical disability and cognitive functioning.

High-resolution T1-relaxation time mapping displays subtle, clinically relevant, gray matter damage in long-standing multiple sclerosis.

Background: Gray matter (GM) pathology has high clinical relevance in multiple sclerosis (MS), but conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is insufficiently sensitive to visualize the rather subtle damage.

Objective: To investigate whether high spatial resolution T1-relaxation time (T1-RT) measurements can detect changes in the normal-appearing GM of patients with long-standing MS and whether these changes are associated with physical and cognitive impairment.

Methods: High spatial resolution (1.

Multi-parametric structural magnetic resonance imaging in relation to cognitive dysfunction in long-standing multiple sclerosis.

Background: Cognitive deficits are common in multiple sclerosis. Most previous studies investigating the imaging substrate of cognitive deficits in multiple sclerosis included patients with relatively short disease durations and were limited to one modality/brain region.

Objective: To identify the strongest neuroimaging predictors for cognitive dysfunction in a large cohort of patients with long-standing multiple sclerosis.

Unraveling the neuroimaging predictors for motor dysfunction in long-standing multiple sclerosis.

Objective: To find the strongest neuroimaging predictors for motor dysfunction using conventional and quantitative imaging measures focusing on the corticospinal tract (CST) in a large cohort of patients with long-standing multiple sclerosis (MS).

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, a wide spectrum of neuroimaging measures at the whole-brain, cervical, and CST level were analyzed in 195 patients with MS and 54 healthy controls. Motor function was assessed using the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS), 9-Hole Peg Test, Timed 25-Foot Walk Test, and Multiple Sclerosis Walking Scale.

Automatic segmentation and volumetry of multiple sclerosis brain lesions from MR images.

The location and extent of white matter lesions on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are important criteria for diagnosis, follow-up and prognosis of multiple sclerosis (MS). Clinical trials have shown that quantitative values, such as lesion volumes, are meaningful in MS prognosis. Manual lesion delineation for the segmentation of lesions is, however, time-consuming and suffers from observer variability.

Differential patterns of spinal cord and brain atrophy in NMO and MS.

Objective: To investigate spinal cord and brain atrophy in neuromyelitis optica (NMO), and its relationship with other MRI measurements and clinical disability, compared with patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and healthy controls (HC).

Methods: We recruited 35 patients with NMO, 35 patients with MS, and 35 HC, who underwent both spinal cord and brain MRI. Mean upper cervical cord area (MUCCA), brain parenchymal fraction (BPF), gray matter fraction (GMF), white matter fraction (WMF), and spinal cord and brain lesion loads were measured and compared among groups.

Unraveling the relationship between regional gray matter atrophy and pathology in connected white matter tracts in long-standing multiple sclerosis.

Introduction: Gray matter (GM) atrophy is common in multiple sclerosis (MS), but the relationship with white matter (WM) pathology is largely unknown. Some studies found a co-occurrence in specific systems, but a regional analysis across the brain in different clinical phenotypes is necessary to further understand the disease mechanism underlying GM atrophy in MS. Therefore, we investigated the association between regional GM atrophy and pathology in anatomically connected WM tracts.

Disruption of structural and functional networks in long-standing multiple sclerosis.

Both gray matter atrophy and disruption of functional networks are important predictors for physical disability and cognitive impairment in multiple sclerosis (MS), yet their relationship is poorly understood. Graph theory provides a modality invariant framework to analyze patterns of gray matter morphology and functional coactivation. We investigated, how gray matter and functional networks were affected within the same MS sample and examined their interrelationship.

Mean upper cervical cord area (MUCCA) measurement in long-standing multiple sclerosis: relation to brain findings and clinical disability.

Background: The majority of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) present with spinal cord pathology. Spinal cord atrophy is thought to be a marker of disease severity, but in long-disease duration its relation to brain pathology and clinical disability is largely unknown.

Objective: Our aim was to investigate mean upper cervical cord area (MUCCA) in patients with long-standing MS and assess its relation to brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measures and clinical disability.

What explains gray matter atrophy in long-standing multiple sclerosis?

Purpose: To identify the measures of focal and diffuse white matter (WM) abnormalities that are related to whole-brain, deep, and cortical gray matter (GM) atrophy in long-standing multiple sclerosis (MS).

Materials And Methods: The institutional review board approved the study; all subjects gave written informed consent. Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging was performed at 3 T in 208 patients with MS of long-standing duration (disease duration ≥ 10 years) and in 60 healthy control subjects.

Accurate white matter lesion segmentation by k nearest neighbor classification with tissue type priors (kNN-TTPs).

Introduction: The segmentation and volumetric quantification of white matter (WM) lesions play an important role in monitoring and studying neurological diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS) or cerebrovascular disease. This is often interactively done using 2D magnetic resonance images. Recent developments in acquisition techniques allow for 3D imaging with much thinner sections, but the large number of images per subject makes manual lesion outlining infeasible.

Accelerated aging, decreased white matter integrity, and associated neuropsychological dysfunction 25 years after pediatric lymphoid malignancies.

Purpose: CNS-directed chemotherapy (CT) and cranial radiotherapy (CRT) for childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia or lymphoma have various neurotoxic properties. This study aimed to assess their impact on the maturing brain 20 to 30 years after diagnosis, providing a much stronger perspective on long-term quality of life than previous studies.

Patients And Methods: Ninety-three patients treated between 1978 and 1990 at various intensities, with and without CRT, and 49 healthy controls were assessed with magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and neuropsychological tests.

Cortical imaging in multiple sclerosis: recent findings and 'grand challenges'.

Purpose Of Review: This review summarizes recent advancements in cortical imaging in multiple sclerosis (MS).

Recent Findings: New and advanced imaging techniques have been developed to improve cortical lesion detection, measure cortical atrophy and depict diffuse gray matter damage. New pulse sequences have been developed and (ultra) high-field strength has been proven to be advantageous in the visualization of cortical lesions.

Long-term effects of cranial irradiation and intrathecal chemotherapy in treatment of childhood leukemia: a MEG study of power spectrum and correlated cognitive dysfunction.

Background: Prophylaxis to prevent relapses in the central nervous system after childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) used to consist of both intrathecal chemotherapy (CT) and cranial irradiation (CRT). CRT was mostly abolished in the eighties because of its neurotoxicity, and replaced with more intensive intrathecal CT. In this study, a group of survivors treated with CRT before 1983 and another group treated without CRT thereafter are investigated 20-25 years later, giving a much stronger perspective on long-term quality of life than previous studies.