Type:
Educational Exhibit
Keywords:
Neuroradiology brain, CNS, MR-Spectroscopy, Diagnostic procedure, Cancer, Metastases, Neoplasia
Authors:
I. Nosek1, J. Boban1, M. Bjelan1, J. Ostojic2, D. Kozic1; 1Sremska Kamenica/RS, 2Odense/DK
DOI:
10.26044/ecr2019/C-3378
Background
Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) is a diagnostic tool that provides information on brain metabolism [1].
The two main techniques used are:
- single voxel spectroscopy with short and long echo,
which samples a single region of interest.
Two commonly used techniques are stimulated echo acquisition mode (STEAM) [2] and proton resolved spectroscopy (PRESS) [3].
- multivoxel MRS or chemical shift imaging (CSI) [4],
which obtains samples from multiple adjacent regions,
and measures larger volumes of brain tissue.
The main metabolites which are detected are:
- choline (Cho),
a cell membrane function marker,
at 3.2ppm,
- creatine (Cr),
an energy reserve marker,
at 3.0ppm,
- N-acetyl aspartate (NAA),
a marker of neuronal function,
at 2.0ppm,
- myo-inositol (mI),
a glial cell marker,
at 3,5ppm,
- lipids,
markers of brain tissue destruction,
detected from 0.9 to 1.4ppm,
- and lactate,
a marker of anaerobic glycolysis,
at 1.3ppm.
Due to the lack of consistent guidelines,
many still consider MRS controversial.