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Abstract #4375

The Dynamics of Brain and CSF Growth in Normal Versus Hydrocephalic Development in a Mouse Model

Jason Gregory Mandell1,2, Thomas Neuberger3, Corina S. Drapaca1, Andrew G. Webb4, Steven J. Schiff1,5

1Center for Neural Engineering, Department of Engineering Science and Mechanics, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, United States; 2Department of Bioengineering, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, United States; 3Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, United States; 4C.J. Gorter Center for High Field MRI, Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, Netherlands; 5Departments of Neurosurgery and Physics, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, United States


Hydrocephalus has traditionally been quantified by linear measurements of ventricle size. However, clinical outcome is related to brain cognitive function, which is more directly related to brain volume. We quantified brain and ventricular volume growth in normal versus kaolin-induced hydrocephalic development in mice from ages 2-12 weeks using 14T MRI. Hydrocephalic mice responded with brain growth either consistent with or faster than normal, correlating to the absence or presence of parenchymal edema. Clinical measurements were unable to discriminate between these patterns, demonstrating the clinical importance of brain volume measurements and the feasibility of constructing normative brain and fluid growth curves.

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