title: Head movement, an important contributor to human cerebrospinal fluid circulation.
abstract: The suboccipital muscles are connected to the upper cervical spinal dura mater via the myodural bridges (MDBs). Recently, it was suggested that they might work as a pump to provide power for cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) circulation. The purpose of this study was to investigate effects of the suboccipital muscles contractions on the CSF flow. Forty healthy adult volunteers were subjected to cine phase-contrast MR imaging. Each volunteer was scanned twice, once before and once after one-minute-head-rotation period. CSF flow waveform parameters at craniocervical junction were analyzed. The results showed that, after the head rotations, the maximum and average CSF flow rates during ventricular diastole were significantly increased, and the CSF stroke volumes during diastole and during entire cardiac cycle were significantly increased. This suggested that the CSF flow was significantly promoted by head movements. Among the muscles related with head movements, only three suboccipital muscles are connected to the upper cervical spinal dura mater via MDBs. It was believed that MDBs might transform powers of the muscles to CSF. The present results suggested that the head movements served as an important contributor to CSF dynamics and the MDBs might be involved in this mechanism.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, 116044, China.|Department of Radiology, The 403 Affiliated Hospital of Chinese PLA General Hospital, Dalian, 116021, China.
authors.forename: Qiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, 116044, China.
authors.forename: Sheng-Bo
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, 116044, China.
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, 116044, China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Ying
authors.initials: XY
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, 116044, China.
authors.forename: Yan-Yan
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Chi
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, 116044, China.|Department of Radiology, The 403 Affiliated Hospital of Chinese PLA General Hospital, Dalian, 116021, China.
authors.forename: Cong
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Dalian Municipal Central Hospital, Dalian, 116033, China.
authors.forename: Xue-Mei
authors.initials: XM
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Shandong Medical Imaging Research Institute, School of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, 250021, China.
authors.forename: Xiang-Tao
authors.initials: XT
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, 116044, China.
authors.forename: Hong-Jin
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Sui
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002555:Cerebrospinal Fluid / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D005260:Female; D006257:Head / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009068:Movement