title: Characteristics of flow through the internal jugular veins at cervical C2/C3 and C5/C6 levels for multiple sclerosis patients using MR phase contrast imaging.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study blood flow characteristics through the internal jugular veins (IJVs) at the cervical levels C2/C3 and C5/C6 in the neck of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  Magnetic resonance imaging at 3T was performed on 323 MS patients. Phase contrast  imaging was used to quantify blood flow at both the C2/C3 and C5/C6 levels. Total IJV flow (tIJF) was normalized by total arterial flow (tAF). Contrast-enhanced time-resolved 3D MR arteriovenography and 2D time-of-flight MR venography were performed to assess IJV anatomy. Based on this assessment,  the MS population was divided into non-stenotic (NST) and stenotic (ST) subjects.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of all the patients, 100 (31%) belonged to the NST group and 223 (69%) belonged to the ST group. At the C2/C3 and C5/C6 levels, the normalized tIJF of the ST group was 56±26% and 51±23%,  respectively. This was significantly lower than that of the NST group, 85±13% and 73±12% (P<0·001). Zero percent and 5% of the NST group had a normalized tIJF of less than 50% at the C2/C3 and C5/C6 levels, compared to 37% and 47% for the ST group. The tAF was  smaller for the secondary and primary progressive MS patients than the relapsing remitting MS patients (P = 0·02 and 0·01, respectively), while the tIJF was similar among all MS types.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Total blood flow through the IJVs at both the C2/C3  and C5/C6 levels was reduced in the ST group compared to the NST group.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Feng
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Utriainen
authors.forename: Gabriela
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Trifan
authors.forename: Saba
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Elias
authors.forename: Sean
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sethi
authors.forename: Joseph
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hewett
authors.forename: E Mark
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Haacke
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002574:Cervical Vertebrae; D003251:Constriction, Pathologic / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007601:Jugular Veins / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D018810:Magnetic Resonance Angiography / Q000379:methods; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010690:Phlebography / Q000379:methods; D012039:Regional Blood Flow / Q000502:physiology*