3T PROPELLER diffusion tensor fiber tractography: a feasibility study for cranial nerve fiber tracking.
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of periodically rotated overlapping parallel lines with enhanced reconstruction (PROPELLER)-based diffusion tensor fiber tractography (DTT) at 3T to visualize infratentorial small fiber structures that cannot be visualized adequately using a conventional single shot echo planar imaging (ssEPI)-based pulse sequence.


METHODS
Four healthy male volunteers were examined in this study. Diffusion tensor images were acquired on a 3T clinical magnetic resonance scanner using PROPELLER and echo planar imaging sequences in six motion-probing gradient orientations. Fiber tracking results for the trigeminal and auditory nerves were compared quantitatively.


RESULTS
The trigeminal nerve tract was successfully reconstructed using both acquisition methods (100%). Among these reconstructed tracts, 62.5% of the tracts on PROPELLER-DTT and 25% on ssEPI-DTT were followed to branches beyond the trigeminal ganglion. The reconstructed auditory nerve tract could be identified on PROPELER-DTT (62.5%), whereas no tract or only a short tract was obtained on ssEPI-DTT (37.5%).


CONCLUSIONS
3T PROPELLER-DTT is useful for visualizing infratentorial small neurofiber structures.
Kabasawa
Hiroyuki
H
Department of Radiology, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8655, Japan. hkabasaw-tky@umin.ac.jp
Masutani
Yoshitaka
Y
Aoki
Shigeki
S
Abe
Osamu
O
Masumoto
Tomohiko
T
Hayashi
Naoto
N
Ohtomo
Kuni
K
D000328:Adult; D003391:Cranial Nerves / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D038524:Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D009412:Nerve Fibers