title: Rapid stereological quantitation of temporal neocortex in TLE.
abstract: To determine the extent of neocortical atrophy in the temporal lobe using rapid stereological analysis of magnetic resonance slices in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy and to compare the findings to those obtained by visual analysis of high-resolution magnetic resonance images. 25 patients with temporal lobe epilepsy, along with 25 age-matched controls were scanned using a 1.5 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging machine (GE signa systems Paris). Visual analysis was performed on standard high-resolution images. Volumetric analysis of hippocampus and temporal neocortex was performed using computer-aided stereology (MEASURE program, Patrick Barta, Johns Hopkins, Baltimore, USA). Stereological volumetric analysis demonstrated isolated hippocampal atrophy in only nine (36%) cases including three (12%) with bilateral disease. However, eight (32%) cases had combined hippocampal and neocortical atrophy and three (12%) had isolated neocortical atrophy. All volumetric measurements took less than 10 min. On the other hand, visual analysis suggested that 17 (68%) had hippocampal atrophy alone with only two (8%) having combined neocortical atrophy and a further two (8%) having isolated neocortical atrophy. Nearly half of the patients had temporal neocortical atrophy with or without hippocampal atrophy. This rapid, accurate and non-biased quantitative technique has wide clinical utility and is significantly more valuable in detecting neocortical atrophy than visual analysis alone. The results support the notion that abnormalities may be overlooked by current standards of routine magnetic resonance imaging.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Neurological Sciences, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Beaumont Hospital, Dublin 9, Ireland. cpdoherty@partners.org
authors.forename: Colin P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Doherty
authors.forename: Mary
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fitzsimons
authors.forename: Gloria
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Meredith
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Thornton
authors.forename: Deirdre
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: McMackin
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Farrell
authors.forename: Jack
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Phillips
authors.forename: Hugh
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Staunton
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001284:Atrophy; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004833:Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D019579:Neocortex / Q000473:pathology; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000473:pathology*