title: Diagnostic pitfalls in fetal brain MRI.
abstract: Recent technological advances in fetal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and increased reliability of MRI in depicting abnormalities and lesions, especially in the central nervous system, are increasingly bringing up challenging issues with regard to accurate diagnosis. There are also pitfalls not only attributable to image acquisition but also in clinical interpretation. The misinterpretation of findings because of insufficient knowledge about fetal brain development as visualized by MRI may also be regarded as an important limitation of fetal MRI. We provide an overview of the most common pitfalls experienced in fetal MRI in routine practice, demonstrate how to identify some of the factors that lead to imaging misinterpretation, and suggest ways to tackle these problems, with an emphasis on MR techniques and image calibration.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Division of General and Pediatric Radiology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. ali.al-mukthar@maduniwien.ac.at
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Al-Mukhtar
authors.forename: Gregor
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kasprian
authors.forename: Maria T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Schmook
authors.forename: Peter C
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Brugger
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Prayer
mesh_terms: D001921:Brain / Q000002:abnormalities / Q000196:embryology; D001927:Brain Diseases / Q000151:congenital / Q000175:diagnosis*; D003951:Diagnostic Errors; D005260:Female; D047109:Fetal Development; D005315:Fetal Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D011247:Pregnancy; D011296:Prenatal Diagnosis