Abstract #3216

Diffusion Tensor MRI Study of the Spinal Cord in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis

Jan von Meyenburg¹, bertram Wilm², anja Weck³, evelyn Gallus¹, Elisabeth Schtzle¹, Peter Boesiger², Norbert Goebels³, Spyros S. Kollias¹

¹Institute of Neuroradiology, University Hospital Zrich, Zrich, Switzerland; ²Institute for Biomedical Engineering, University & ETH Zrich, Zrich, Switzerland; ³Department of Neurology, University Hospital Zrich, Zrich, Switzerland

Diffusion tensor imaging of 18 volunteers and 41 patients with relapsing remitting Multiple sclerosis (MS), secondary progressive MS or primary progressive MS was acquired at three levels (cervical, thoracic, lumbar enlargement) of the spinal cord. Diffusivity values were evaluated in normal appearing posterior white matter (PWM). Fractional anisotropy in cervical PWM was highest in healthy volunteers and lowest in PPMS patients. Mean apparent diffusion coefficient was lowest in volunteers and highest in RRMS patients. Neuropathological changes might be responsible for the difference of diffusivity values between MS-types. Furthermore the anisotropy values suggest that axonal loss decreases in a cranio-caudal sense.