Diffusion tensor MRI of the healthy brachial plexus

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 13; no. 5; p. e0196975
• Main Authors: Oudeman, Jos, Verhamme, Camiel, Engbersen, Maurits P., Caan, Mattan W. A., Maas, Mario, Froeling, Martijn, Nederveen, Aart J., Strijkers, Gustav J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 09.05.2018; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Age; Aged; Anisotropy; Biology and Life Sciences; Body mass; Brachial plexus; Brachial Plexus - diagnostic imaging; Brachial Plexus - physiology; Coefficient of variation; Correlation; Diffusion; Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging - methods; Diffusion Tensor Imaging - methods; Diffusivity; Disease; Echo-Planar Imaging - methods; Fats - metabolism; Female; Health aspects; Humans; Injuries; Linear Models; Magnetic resonance imaging; Male; Medicine and Health Sciences; Middle Aged; Musculoskeletal system; Nerve Fibers - physiology; Nervous system; NMR; Nuclear magnetic resonance; Pathology; Physical Sciences; Research and Analysis Methods; Studies; Ultrasonic imaging; Young Adult; Netherlands
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0196975

Diffusion Tensor MRI (DT-MRI) is a promising tool for the evaluation of brachial plexus pathology. Therefore, we introduce and evaluate a fast DT-MRI protocol (8min33s scanning with 5-10 min postprocessing time) for the brachial plexus. Thirty healthy volunteers within three age-groups (18-35, 36-55, and > 56) received DT-MRI of the brachial-plexus twice. Means of fractional-anisotropy (FA), mean-diffusivity (MD), axial-diffusivity (AD), and radial-diffusivity (RD) for the individual roots and trunks were evaluated. A stepwise forward approach was applied to test for correlations with age, sex, body-mass-index (BMI), bodysurface, height, and bodyweight. Within-subject, intra-rater, and inter-rater repeatability were assessed using Bland-Altman analysis, coefficient of variation (CV), intraclass-correlation (ICC), and minimal detectable difference (MDD). No differences between sides and root levels were found. MD, AD, and RD correlated (P < 0.05) with bodyweight. Within-subject quantification proved repeatable with CVs for FA, MD, AD, and RD of 16%, 12%, 11%, and 14%, respectively. The DT-MRI protocol was fast and repeatable. Found correlations should be considered in future studies of brachial plexus pathology.