Sumei Wang1, Lu Wang1, Hengyi
Rao2, Zhengjun Li2, Lauren B. Elman3, Leo F.
McCluskey3, Elias R. Melhem1, Danny J. J. Wang4,
John H. Woo1
1Radiology, University of
Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States; 2Neurology, Center
for Functional Neuroimaging, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA,
United States; 3Neurology, University of Pennsylvania,
Philadelphia, PA, United States; 4Neurology, Ahmanson-Lovelace
Brain Mapping Center, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, United
States
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the utility of ASL for the detection of CBF abnormalities in patients with ALS. Twenty patients with ALS and 9 normal subjects were included in this study. Significantly reduced CBF in ALS patients compared with healthy subjects was found in bilateral sensorimotor cortex, superior temporal lobe, left anterior cingulate gyrus, calcarine and precuneus cortex. Our study indicates that ASL perfusion may be used as a potential biomarker for the diagnosis and monitoring of disease progression in ALS.