title: DWI of the brain: postmortal DWI of the brain in comparison with in vivo data.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Changes in water diffusion can be quantified by diffusion-weighted MR imaging. However, there are only few reports about changes in post mortem brain. The aim of this study was to investigate the temporal pattern of the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) in the brain after death, to compare the values to in vivo brain and to assess the value of ex vivo DWI as a forensic tool.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study was approved by the local Ethics Committee, and informed consent was obtained from all relatives and the control subjects. Twenty-one corpses, died of natural cause, were examined (13 males, 8 females; age: 70.5±8.7 y, weight 74±18 kg). Diffusion-Weighted Imaging (DWI) was performed with b-values of 0 and 1000 s/mm(2) at 1.5 T. Scans were repeated in intervals of 1 h. ADC-maps were calculated in thalamus, cerebrum and cerebellum. The obtained values were statistically compared to healthy volunteers (n=3) and to literature data.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The ADC in the three regions decreased characteristically during the examination time. In the cerebrum there was a significant difference between ex vivo and in vivo ADC (p<0.001) as well as in the other regions (thalamus: p<0.001, cerebellum: p=0.045).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  DWI of the postmortal brain can be added to the MRI methods for a post mortem imaging.
authors.affiliation: Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Martinistrasse 52, 20246 Hamburg, Germany. tonymanfred.schmidt@googlemail.com
authors.forename: Tony M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Schmidt
authors.forename: Roland
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Fischer
authors.forename: Suzan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Acar
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lorenzen
authors.forename: Axel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Heinemann
authors.forename: Ulrike
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Wedegärtner
authors.forename: Gerhard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Adam
authors.forename: Jin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yamamura
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001834:Body Water / Q000378:metabolism; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D038524:Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D017352:Echo-Planar Imaging; D005260:Female; D049429:Forensic Pathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011180:Postmortem Changes