Abstract
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory demyelinating disease of
the central nervous system that is the most common cause of nontraumatic
disability in young adults in the United States. In recent years,
magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been established as an important
paraclinical tool in MS for the assessment of clinical diagnosis,
natural history, and treatment effects. In MS studies, there are
many advantages to having a sensitive and reliable in vivo method
for investigating the specific pathological changes of white matter
and its integrity during the disease process. As a consequence,
in the past decade, the application of MRI to the study of MS has
been explored from conventional MRI to new advanced quantitative
techniques with greater pathological specificity and sensitivity.
Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is one of the most promising techniques
with regard to MS. It quantifies the amount of nonrandom water diffusion
within tissues and provides unique in vivo information about the
pathological processes that affect water diffusion as a result of
brain microstructural damage. This review outlines the current state
of the art and future direction of DTI and fiber tractography in
the study of MS disease.
- 16394158
- body
- brain
- brain,
- computer-assisted,
- diffusion
- diffusion,
- extramural,
- fibers,
- humans,
- image
- imaging,
- magnetic
- mapping,
- multiple
- myelinated,
- n.i.h.,
- nerve
- neural
- pathways,
- processing,
- research
- resonance
- sclerosis,
- support,
- water,
Users
Please
log in to take part in the discussion (add own reviews or comments).