Upper midbrain profile sign and cingulate sulcus sign: MRI findings on sagittal images in idiopathic normal-pressure hydrocephalus, Alzheimer's disease, and progressive supranuclear palsy.
OBJECTIVE
On magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) sagittal sections, we sometimes encounter abnormal aspects of the superior profile of the midbrain and the cingulate sulcus in patients with dementia. In this preliminary study, we refer to these findings as the "upper midbrain profile sign" and the "cingulate sulcus sign." We prospectively evaluated the usefulness of these signs for the diagnosis of idiopathic normal-pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH), Alzheimer's disease (AD) and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP).


METHODS
We evaluated the upper midbrain profile sign and the cingulate sulcus sign on MRI sagittal images obtained from 21 people with headaches but no neurological deficit (controls), 10 iNPH patients, 11 AD patients, and 5 PSP patients. The upper midbrain profile sign indicated a concave shape to the superior profile of the midbrain on mid-sagittal images, and the cingulate sulcus sign indicated a narrow, tight aspect of the posterior part of the cingulate sulcus on paramedian-sagittal images.


RESULTS
These signs were never seen in any images from the controls. The upper midbrain profile sign was seen in 7 of 10 patients with iNPH, 5 of 11 with AD, and 3 of 5 with PSP. The cingulate sulcus sign was seen in all 10 patients with iNPH but was never seen in any patient with AD or PSP.


CONCLUSIONS
The upper midbrain profile sign could support a diagnosis of PSP but cannot discriminate among iNPH, AD, and PSP. In contrast, the cingulate sulcus sign has a very high sensitivity for iNPH and should facilitate the distinction of iNPH from other dementias. In the clinical setting, it is momentous to evaluate these signs easily by one simple MRI sequence.
Adachi
Michito
M
Department of Radiology, Ohshima Clinic, 4-1-14 Sakurada Nishi, Yamagata 990-2321, Japan. miadchi@beach.ocn.ne.jp
Kawanami
Toru
T
Ohshima
Fumi
F
Kato
Takeo
T
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000473:pathology*; D018849:Controlled Clinical Trials as Topic; D005260:Female; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000473:pathology; D006179:Gyrus Cinguli / Q000473:pathology*; D006261:Headache / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D006850:Hydrocephalus, Normal Pressure / Q000473:pathology*; D007089:Image Enhancement; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008636:Mesencephalon / Q000473:pathology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013494:Supranuclear Palsy, Progressive / Q000473:pathology*