Abstract #0855

Diffusion Tensor Imaging Predicts Outcome ASIA Motor Scores in Acute Traumatic C-Spinal Injury

Jiachen Zhuo¹, Hegang Chen², Bizhan Aarabi³, Jay Menaker⁴, Rao Gullapalli¹, and Kathirkamanathan Shanmuganathan¹

¹Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States, ²Epidemiology & Public Health, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States, ³Neurosurgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States, ⁴Surgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States

Convention MRI is the imaging modality of choice to demonstrate the anatomical location and extent in spinal cord injury (SCI) following trauma. However, quantitative and qualitative lesion parameters within the cord are of limited use in predicting patient neurological outcomes. In this study we demonstrated that acute DTI measurements improve model prediction for 1 year AISA score following blunt cervical SCI. Among all DTI measurements, axial diffusivity, while not radial diffusivity, showed strong effect in predicting outcome, indicating that axonal injury in the cord may be the main factor affecting patient recovery.

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