title: Brain diffusion changes in Eisenmenger syndrome.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This preliminary study aimed to evaluate whether there are changes in the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values of the brain in patients presenting with Eisenmenger syndrome (ES).
  
  
  METHODS
  This cross-sectional study included 10 consecutively recruited patients with ES and 10 healthy control subjects. In the patients and controls, eight distinct neuroanatomical locations were selected for analysis. Quantitative measurements of ADC values of the frontal white matter (FWM), occipital white matter, lentiform nucleus (LN), thalamus, frontal cortex, anterior and posterior limbs of the internal capsule and caudate nucleus were measured. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS®(IBM Corp., New York, NY; formerly SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL) for Windows v. 20. Data were presented as mean ± standard deviation values. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to assess differences in the ADC values of each brain location between the ES group and the control group. Statistical significance was accepted at the level of p < 0.05.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The ADC values of the FWM and LN were significantly higher in the ES group than that in the control group. The mean ADC levels of other brain regions were not significantly different between the groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Chronic hypoxia in patients with ES may lead to diffusion changes in the brain tissue. There is a need for further studies to assess the clinical significance of cerebral ADC values in patients with ES. Advances in knowledge: The ratio of extracellular volume to intracellular volume in the FWM and LN can be considered to be increased in patients with ES.
authors: 1 Department of Radiology, Sanliurfa Children's Hospital, Sanliurfa, Turkey.
authors: Ferit
authors: F
authors: Dogan
authors: 2 Department of Radiology, Faculty of Medicine, Harran University, Sanliurfa, Turkey.
authors: Dilek
authors: D
authors: Sen Dokumaci
authors: 3 Department of Pediatric Cardiology, Sanliurfa Children's Hospital, Sanliurfa, Turkey.
authors: Ali
authors: A
authors: Yildirim
authors: 2 Department of Radiology, Faculty of Medicine, Harran University, Sanliurfa, Turkey.
authors: Erol
authors: E
authors: Bozdogan
authors: 2 Department of Radiology, Faculty of Medicine, Harran University, Sanliurfa, Turkey.
authors: Fatima N
authors: FN
authors: Boyaci
authors: 4 Department of Pediatric Cardiology, Faculty of Medicine, Harran University, Sanliurfa, Turkey.
authors: Bulent
authors: B
authors: Koca
authors: 2 Department of Radiology, Faculty of Medicine, Harran University, Sanliurfa, Turkey.
authors: Ekrem
authors: E
authors: Karakas
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology*; D001931:Brain Mapping / Q000379:methods*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D038524:Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D004541:Eisenmenger Complex / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D011446:Prospective Studies