DTI Detects FA Changes in the Internal Capsule and Thalamus in Rat After Traumatic Brain Injury - Comparison with Histology

Teemu P. Laitinen¹, Alejandra Sierra Lopez¹, Tamuna Bolkvadze¹, Asla Pitknen¹, Olli H. Grhn¹

The ability of diffusion tensor imaging to detect neurobiological alterations after traumatic brain injury was studied in rats with TBI induced by lateral percussion injury. Our results show that the fractional anisotropy was increased in the ipsilateral laterodorsal thalamic nuclei and in the ipsilateral ventral posterolateral and -medial thalamic nuclei, and that FA was decreased in the ipsilateral internal capsule six months after the induction of TBI when compared to control animals. Preliminary results from histology showed structural changes as well as demyelination in these areas, consistent with the DTI results.