title: Superficial siderosis of the central nervous system: a post-mortem 7.0-tesla magnetic resonance imaging study with neuropathological correlates.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Superficial siderosis (SS) is a rare finding on T2*-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), regarded as a radiological marker of cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA). The present study investigates with 7.0-tesla MRI the prevalence of SS and its underlying pathological substrate in a consecutive series of post-mortem brains of elderly patients with various neurodegenerative and cerebrovascular lesions.
  
  
  METHODS
  The prevalence of SS and associated lesions was screened using 7.0-tesla MRI and their neuropathological correlates in 120 post-mortem brains of patients with various neurodegenerative and cerebrovascular diseases.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eighty-three separate zones of SS were detected in 45 brains (37.5%), including 25 areas of disseminated SS (dSS) and 58 areas of focal SS (fSS), restricted to less than 3 sulci. dSS was spatially related to sequels of 14 lobar haematomas and 11 cerebral infarcts, while fSS was connected to 19 microbleeds and 39 micro-infarcts (p < 0.001). Comparison of the 15 CAA to the 30 non-CAA brains showed that dSS was due to an old lobar haematoma in 53% of the former group compared to 3% of the latter group (p = 0.003). fSS was due to a microbleed in 7% of the CAA brains and to 40% of the non-CAA brains (p = 0.03).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  SS is associated with both haemorrhagic and ischaemic underlying lesions. It is frequently observed on T2*-weighted 7.0-tesla MRI, and two types of SS may be described. Clinicians should keep in mind that SS may be found in other settings than CAA.
authors.affiliation: Université Lille Nord de France, UDSL, EA 1046, Lille, France.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: De Reuck
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Deramecourt
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cordonnier
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Auger
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Durieux
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Pasquier
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bordet
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Defebvre
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Caparros-Lefebvre
authors.forename: C A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Maurage
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Leys
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001344:Autopsy / Q000295:instrumentation; D002490:Central Nervous System / Q000473:pathology*; D016657:Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy / Q000473:pathology*; D002543:Cerebral Hemorrhage / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D015995:Prevalence; D011859:Radiography; D012806:Siderosis / Q000473:pathology*