Abstract #1454

Assessing neurodegeneration across the spinal axis using high-resolution MRI

Gergely David¹, Eveline Huber¹, Armin Curt¹, Nikolaus Weiskopf^2,3, Siawoosh Mohammadi^3,4, and Patrick Freund^1,2,3

¹Spinal Cord Injury Center, Balgrist, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland, ²Department of Neurophysics, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany, ³Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, UCL Institute of Neurology, London, United Kingdom, ⁴4Department of Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany

Traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI) affects both grey and white matter and may result in atrophy due to anterograde/retrograde degeneration of the motor and sensory tracts. Several studies have investigated the cervical spinal cord in SCI patients, but little is known about the degeneration occurring below the lesion site. In this study, we utilize high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging to demonstrate the feasibility of measuring spinal cord, grey matter and dorsal column area at the cervical and lumbar enlargement. Investigating volumetric differences at both spinal levels allows for a more comprehensive assessment of neurodegeneration in SCI patients.

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