Reduction of increased signal intensity in the basal ganglia on T1-weighted MR images during treatment of hepatic encephalopathy.
A 61-year-old man with liver cirrhosis showed a symmetrical increase in the signal intensity of the basal ganglia on T1-weighted magnetic resonance (MR) images, which was diminished after 3 months of treatment for hepatic encephalopathy. He recovered from encephalopathy with treatment, and liver dysfunction (hyperammonemia and abnormal blood coagulation) as well as the results of quantitative psychometric tests showed a marked improvement. The cause of these high signal intensity changes on T1-weighted images and the reason for their partial reversibility are not known, but hyperammonemia due to portal-systemic shunting might be closely related to these clinical observations.
Third Department of Internal Medicine, Toyama Medical and Pharmaceutical University, Japan.
A
A
Watanabe
J
J
Murakami
T
T
Ando
O
O
Hioki
H
H
Wakabayashi
K
K
Higuchi
D000641:Ammonia / Q000097:blood; D001479:Basal Ganglia / Q000473:pathology*; D006501:Hepatic Encephalopathy / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
D000641:Ammonia