title: Quantification of white matter injury following neonatal stroke with serial DTI.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) can be used to predict outcome following perinatal arterial ischemic stroke (PAIS), although little is known about white matter changes over time.
  
  
  METHODS
  Infants with PAIS were serially scanned in the neonatal period (n = 15), at 3 mo (n = 16), and at 24 mo (n = 8). Fractional anisotropy (FA) values in five regions of interest (anterior and posterior limb of the internal capsule, corpus callosum, optic radiation, and posterior thalamic radiation) were obtained and compared with FA values of healthy controls and neurodevelopmental outcome.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the neonatal period, no differences in FA values were found. At 3 mo, the six infants who ultimately developed motor deficits showed lower FA values in all affected regions. Four infants developed a visual field defect and showed lower FA values in the affected optic radiation at 3 mo (0.22 vs. 0.29; P = 0.03). Finally, a correlation between FA values of the corpus callosum at 3 mo and the Griffiths developmental quotients was found (r = 0.66; P = 0.03). At 24 mo, a similar pattern was observed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Neonatal FA measurements may underestimate the extent of injury following PAIS. FA measurements at 3 mo could be considered a more reliable predictor of neurodevelopmental outcome and correlate with DTI findings at 24 mo.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neonatology, Wilhelmina Children's Hospital, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Niek E
authors.initials: NE
authors.lastname: van der Aa
authors.forename: Frances J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Northington
authors.forename: Brian S
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Stone
authors.forename: Floris
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Groenendaal
authors.forename: Manon J N L
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Benders
authors.forename: Giorgio
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Porro
authors.forename: Shoko
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Susumu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mori
authors.forename: Linda S
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: de Vries
authors.forename: Jiangyang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D002675:Child, Preschool; D056324:Diffusion Tensor Imaging; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007232:Infant, Newborn, Diseases / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D056784:Leukoencephalopathies / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D020521:Stroke / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D014794:Visual Fields