Diffusion-weighted MR imaging in biopsy-proven Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
OBJECTIVE
To compare conventional and diffusion-weighted MR imaging in terms of their depiction of the abnormalities occurring in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.


METHODS
We retrospectively analyzed the findings of conventional (T2-weighted and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery) and diffusion-weighted MR imaging in four patients with biopsy-proven Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. The signal intensity of the lesion was classified by visual assessment as markedly high, slightly high, or isointense, relative to normal brain parenchyma.


RESULTS
Both conventional and diffusion-weighted MR images demonstrated bilateral high signal intensity in the basal ganglia in all four patients. Cortical lesions were observed on diffusion-weighted MR images in all four, and on fluid-attenuated inversion recovery MR images in one, but in no patient on T2-weighted images. Conventional MR images showed slightly high signal intensity in all lesions, while diffusion-weighted images showed markedly high signal intensity in most.


CONCLUSIONS
Diffusion-weighted MR imaging is more sensitive than its conventional counterpart in the depiction of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, and permits better detection of the lesion in both the cerebral cortices and basal ganglia.
Kim
H C
HC
Department of Radiology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Korea.
Chang
K H
KH
Song
I C
IC
Lee
S H
SH
Kwon
B J
BJ
Han
M H
MH
Kim
S Y
SY
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001706:Biopsy; D007562:Creutzfeldt-Jakob Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity