Whole body MRI

BACKGROUND CONTEXT: The most frequent type of spinal cord injury is cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM). Conventional structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the gold diagnosis standard for CSM. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) could reflect microstructural changes in the spinal cord by tracing water molecular diffusion in early stages of CSM. However, due to the complex local anatomical structure and small field of view of the spinal cord, the imaging effect of traditional DTI imaging on the spinal cord is limited...

AIM OF THE STUDY: Multiple ring-enhancing lesions are commonly experienced group of brain pathologies which we come across in day-to-day practice. Clinical symptoms in these lesions are quite non-specific, and hence, it is difficult to reach a final diagnosis. However, these lesions have a varied group of differential diagnosis and it is sometimes difficult to have an accurate diagnosis on conventional MRI. This article was written with the objective of discussing the demographical study and etiology, clinical diagnosis and management for these patients...

BACKGROUND: Telomere attrition may share common biological mechanisms with bone and muscle loss with aging. Here, we investigated the association between these hallmarks of aging using data from UK Biobank, a large observational study. METHODS: Leukocyte telomere length (LTL as T/S ratio) was measured using a multiplex qPCR assay at baseline (2006-2010). Bone mineral density (whole body and regional; via dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry), trabecular bone score (via lumbar-spine dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry images), fat-free muscle volume (thighs; via magnetic resonance imaging), and muscle fat infiltration (thighs; via magnetic resonance imaging) were measured during the imaging visit (2014-2018)...

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: Obesity is a risk factor for several brain-related health issues, and high body-mass index (BMI) is associated with an increased risk for several neurological conditions, including cognitive decline and dementia. Cardiovascular, respiratory, and vasomotor brain pulsations have each been shown to drive intracranial cerebrovascular fluid (CSF) flow, which is linked to the brain metabolite efflux that sustains homeostasis. While these three physiological pulsations are demonstrably altered in numerous brain diseases, there is no previous investigation of the association between physiological brain pulsations and BMI...

BACKGROUND: Marathon training can reverse bone marrow conversion; however, little is known about the normal bone marrow whole-body diffusion-weighted imaging (WB-DWI) signal characteristics of amateur marathon runners. If marathon training can cause diffuse hyperintensity of bone marrow on WB-DWI is essential for correctly interpreting the diffusion-weighted (DW) images. This study sought to evaluate the WB-DWI signal characteristics of normal bone marrow in amateur marathon runners. METHODS: In this prospective cross-sectional study, 30 amateur marathon runners who had trained for over 3 years for regular or half-marathon races and had a running frequency of more than 20 days a month at a distance of more than 100 km per month from the Chengde Marathon Outdoor Sports Association in Hebei, China, and 30 age- and gender-matched, healthy volunteers (the control group) who had no long-term heavy-load sports history were recruited between April 2021 to September 2021...

PURPOSE: Metastatic melanoma lymph nodes (MMLns) might be challenging to detect on MR-WBI, as both MMLns and normal lymph nodes (NLns) can show restricted water diffusion. Our purpose is to assess the potential contribution of the DIXON sequence in differentiating MMLns from NLns. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We followed a cohort of 107 patients with stage IIIb/c and IV skin melanoma for 32 months using MR-WBI with DIXON, STIR, and DWI/ADC sequences. We compared signal intensity (SI) values of MMLns and NLns in the four series of the DIXON sequence (in/out-of-phase, fat_only, and water_only series)...

BACKGROUND: In addition to the diagnostic accuracy of imaging methods, patient-reported satisfaction with imaging methods is important. OBJECTIVE: To report a secondary outcome of the prospective international multicenter Imaging Study in Advanced ovArian Cancer (ISAAC Study), detailing patients' experience with abdomino-pelvic ultrasound, whole-body contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT), and whole-body diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (WB-DWI/MRI) for pre-operative ovarian cancer work-up...

Obesity represents a significant public health concern and is linked to various comorbidities and cognitive impairments. Previous research indicates that elevated body mass index (BMI) is associated with structural changes in white matter (WM). However, a deeper characterization of body composition is required, especially considering the links between abdominal obesity and metabolic dysfunction. This study aims to enhance our understanding of the relationship between obesity and WM connectivity by directly assessing the amount and distribution of fat tissue...

BACKGROUND: Urethral malignant melanoma is an uncommon and aggressive malignancy, frequently diagnosed at an advanced stage, posing diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. CASE PRESENTATION: We present the case of a 74-year-old North African female diagnosed with primary metastatic urethral melanoma. Initial staging included a thorough physical examination, pelvic MRI, and whole-body CT scan, initially showing no signs of distant metastasis. Subsequent FDG PET/CT revealed unexpected bone metastases, prompting a significant shift in our management approach...

BACKGROUND: Observational studies suggest an association between sarcopenia-related traits and brain aging, but whether this association reflects a causal relationship remains unclear. This study aims to employ Mendelian randomization (MR) methods to investigate the causal impact of sarcopenia-related traits on brain aging. METHODS: This study presents a comprehensive analysis of genome-wide association study (GWAS) summary data associated with sarcopenia-related traits...

For over a century, brain research narrative has mainly centered on neuron cells. Accordingly, most neurodegenerative studies focus on neuronal dysfunction and their selective vulnerability, while we lack comprehensive analyses of other major cell types' contribution. By unifying spatial gene expression, structural MRI, and cell deconvolution, here we describe how the human brain distribution of canonical cell types extensively predicts tissue damage in 13 neurodegenerative conditions, including early- and late-onset Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, dementia with Lewy bodies, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, mutations in presenilin-1, and 3 clinical variants of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (behavioral variant, semantic and non-fluent primary progressive aphasia) along with associated three-repeat and four-repeat tauopathies and TDP43 proteinopathies types A and C...

PURPOSE: This study examines the diagnostic potential of whole-body blood pool scintigraphy (WBBPS) using technetium-99 m-labeled red blood cells to detect congenital vascular malformations (CVMs). It aims to compare its efficacy with traditional imaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and ultrasonography (USG), emphasizing its potential advantages in terms of characterization of lesions and capacity for whole-body assessment. METHODS: The efficacy of WBBPS and single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT)/computed tomography (CT) imaging in diagnosing CVMs, comparing them with USG and MRI results, was evaluated in this retrospective study...

Sarcopenia refers to age-related loss of muscle mass and function and is related to impaired somatic and brain health, including cognitive decline and Alzheimer's disease. However, the relationships between sarcopenia, brain structure and cognition are poorly understood. Here, we investigate the associations between sarcopenic traits, brain structure and cognitive performance. We included 33 709 UK Biobank participants (54.2% female; age range 44-82 years) with structural and diffusion magnetic resonance imaging, thigh muscle fat infiltration ( n = 30 561) from whole-body magnetic resonance imaging (muscle quality indicator) and general cognitive performance as indicated by the first principal component of a principal component analysis across multiple cognitive tests ( n = 22 530)...

The periaqueductal gray (PAG) is located in the mesencephalon in the upper brainstem and, as part of the descending pain modulation, is considered a crucial structure for pain control. Its modulatory effect on painful sensation is often seen as a systemic function affecting the whole body similarly. However, recent animal data suggest some kind of somatotopy in the PAG. This would make the PAG capable of dermatome-specific analgesic function. We electrically stimulated the three peripheral dermatomes of the trigemino-cervical complex and the greater occipital nerve in 61 humans during optimized brainstem functional magnetic resonance imaging...

In this case report, we describe an uncommon case of neuroendocrine cancer of unknown origin began with cauda equina syndrome in a patient affected by Paget disease of bone (PDB). A 76-year-old man with diagnosis of PDB, without history of pain or bone deformity, developed sudden severe low back pain. Bone alkaline phosphatase was increased and MRI and whole-body scintigraphy confirmed the localization of the disease at the third vertebra of the lumbar spine. Treatment with Neridronic Acid was started, but after only 2 weeks of therapy anuria and bowel occlusion occurred together with lower limb weakness and walking impairment...

BACKGROUND: High blood pressure (BP) in middle-aged and older adults is associated with a brain white matter (WM) microstructural abnormality. However, little evidence is available in healthy young adults. We investigated the associations between high BP and WM microstructural integrity in young adults. METHODS: This study included 1015 healthy young adults (542 female, 22-37 years) from the Human Connectome Project. Brachial systolic and diastolic BP were measured using a semiautomatic or manual sphygmomanometer...

PURPOSE: We aim to investigate the associations between lumbar paraspinal muscles and sagittal malalignment in patients undergoing lumbar three-column osteotomy. METHODS: Patients undergoing three-column osteotomy between 2016 and 2021 with preoperative lumbar magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and whole spine radiographs in the standing position were included. Muscle measurements were obtained using a validated custom software for segmentation and muscle evaluation to calculate the functional cross-sectional area (fCSA) and percent fat infiltration (FI) of the m...

BACKGROUND: The association of dietary patterns and longitudinal changes in brain volume has rarely been investigated in Japanese individuals. We prospectively investigated this association in middle-aged and older Japanese community-dwelling adults. METHODS: Data with a 2-year follow-up from the sixth wave (July 2008 to July 2010; baseline) to the seventh (July 2010 to July 2012; follow-up) of the National Institute for Longevity Sciences-Longitudinal Study of Aging project were analyzed...

Renal coloboma syndrome (RCS) and dominant optic atrophy are mainly caused by heterozygous mutations in PAX2 and OPA1, respectively. We describe a patient with digenic mutations in PAX2 and OPA1. A female infant was born without perinatal abnormalities. Magnetic resonance imaging at 4 months of age showed bilateral microphthalmia and optic nerve hypoplasia. Appropriate body size was present at 2 years of age, and mental development was favorable. Color fundus photography revealed severe retinal atrophy in both eyes...

BACKGROUND: Individual patterns of fat accumulation (visceral, subcutaneous, and/or liver fat) can determine cardiometabolic risk profile. OBJECTIVE: To investigate risk stratification using personalized fat z-scores in persons with a body mass index (BMI) of 30-40 kg/m2 from the UK Biobank imaging study. SETTING: Population-based study. METHODS: Whole-body magnetic resonance (MR) images of 40,174 participants from the UK Biobank imaging study were analyzed for visceral adipose tissue (VAT), abdominal subcutaneous adipose tissue (aSAT), and liver fat (LF) and used to calculate sex- and body size-invariant fat z-scores (VATz, aSATz, LFz)...