title: MRI findings in spinal cord injury patients who have respiratory distress.
abstract: The present study is an attempt to determine the prognostic capability of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with a spinal cord injury (SCI) in the acute phase. The overall management of SCI patients is a prime consideration, and special precautions are required when the patient has respiratory distress. Twelve patients with a complete cervical injury accompanied by respiratory distress were examined by MRI, and a correlation of the MRI findings and the respiratory problems were investigated. In three cases with severe respiratory distress, the SCI was present above the C4-5 level, and MRI showed a high signal intensity at the upper C3. The severity of the respiratory failure was well correlated with the upper margin of the high signal intensity on T2-weighted images.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurological Surgery, Aichi Medical University, Japan.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yamamoto
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nakagawa
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Iwata
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003287:Contrast Media; D005260:Female; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009942:Organometallic Compounds; D004369:Pentetic Acid / Q000031:analogs & derivatives; D011379:Prognosis; D012121:Respiration, Artificial; D012127:Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Newborn / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D014140:Tracheotomy
chemical_list: D003287:Contrast Media; D009942:Organometallic Compounds; D004369:Pentetic Acid; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA