Perfusion MR imaging in gliomas: comparison with histologic tumor grade.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the usefulness of perfusion MR imaging in assessing the histologic grade of cerebral gliomas.


METHODS
In order to determine relative cerebral blood volume (rCBV), 22 patients with pathologically proven gliomas (9 glioblastomas, 9 anaplastic gliomas and 4 low-grade gliomas) underwent dynamic contrast-enhanced T2*-weighted and conventional T1- and T2-weighted imaging. rCBV maps were obtained by fitting a gamma-variate function to the contrast material concentration versus time curve. rCBV ratios between tumor and normal white matter (maximum rCBV of tumor / rCBV of contralateral white matter) were calculated and compared between glioblastomas, anaplastic gliomas and low-grade gliomas.


RESULTS
Mean rCBV ratios were 4.90 degrees +/- 1.01 for glioblastomas, 3.97 degrees +/- 0.56 for anaplastic gliomas and 1.75 degrees +/-1.51 for low-grade gliomas, and were thus significantly different; p <.05 between glioblastomas and anaplastic gliomas, p <.05 between anaplastic gliomas and low-grade gliomas, p <.01 between glioblastomas and low-grade gliomas. The rCBV ratio cutoff value which permitted discrimination between high-grade (glioblastomas and anaplastic gliomas) and low-grade gliomas was 2.60, and the sensitivity and specificity of this value were 100% and 75%, respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
Perfusion MR imaging is a useful and reliable technique for estimating the histologic grade of gliomas.
Lee
S J
SJ
Department of Radiology, Gyeongsang National University College of Medicine, Jinju-si, Korea.
Kim
J H
JH
Kim
Y M
YM
Lee
G K
GK
Lee
E J
EJ
Park
I S
IS
Jung
J M
JM
Kang
K H
KH
Shin
T
T
D000328:Adult; D001254:Astrocytoma / Q000473:pathology*; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D002560:Cerebrovascular Circulation; D003287:Contrast Media; D005260:Female; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA; D005909:Glioblastoma / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male
D003287:Contrast Media; C064925:gadodiamide; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA