Abstract
Small infarcts are among the key imaging features of cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD), but remain largely undetected on conventional MRI. We aimed to evaluate (1) imaging criteria for the detection of small infarcts in the caudate nucleus on 7T MRI, (2) intra- and inter-rater agreement, (3) frequency and (4) detection rate on 7T versus 1.5T MRI. In 90 patients (68 ± 8 years) with a history of vascular disease from the SMART-MR study, we defined 7T imaging criteria for cavitated and non-cavitated small infarcts in the caudate nucleus. In a separate set of 23 patients from the SMART study, intra-rater and inter-rater agreement was excellent for presence, number, and individual locations (Kappa’s, ICCs, and Dice similarity coefficients ranged from 0.85 to 1.00). In the 90 patients, 21 infarcts (20 cavitated) in 12 patients were detected on 7T (13%) compared to 7 infarcts in 6 patients on 1.5T (7%). In conclusion, we established reproducible imaging criteria for the detection of small infarcts in the caudate nucleus on 7T MRI and showed that 7T MRI allows for a higher detection rate than conventional 1.5T MRI. These imaging criteria can be used in future studies to provide new insights into the pathophysiology of CSVD.
Overview publication
Title | Detection and characterization of small infarcts in the caudate nucleus on 7 Tesla MRI: The SMART-MR study. |
Date | September 1st, 2018 |
Issue name | Journal of cerebral blood flow and metabolism : official journal of the International Society of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism |
Issue number | v38.9:1609-1617 |
DOI | 10.1177/0271678X17705974 |
PubMed | 28436255 |
Authors | |
Keywords | 7 tesla MRI, Brain, cerebral infarcts, cerebrovascular disease, magnetic resonance imaging, small vessel disease |
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