High-grade gliomas and solitary metastases: differentiation by using perfusion and proton spectroscopic MR imaging

Meng Law, Soonmee Cha, Edmond A. Knopp, Glyn Johnson, John Arnett, Andrew W. Litt

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506 Citations (SciVal)

Abstract

PURPOSE: To determine whether perfusion-weighted and proton spectroscopic MR imaging can be used to differentiate high-grade primary gliomas and solitary metastases on the basis of differences in vascularity and metabolite levels in the peritumoral region. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifty-one patients with a solitary brain tumor (33 gliomas, 18 metastases) underwent conventional, contrast material--enhanced perfusion-weighted, and proton spectroscopic MR imaging before surgical resection or stereotactic biopsy. Of the 33 patients with gliomas, 22 underwent perfusion-weighted MR imaging; nine, spectroscopic MR imaging; and two underwent both. Of the 18 patients with metastases, 12 underwent perfusion-weighted MR imaging, and six, spectroscopic MR imaging. The peritumoral region was defined as the area in the white matter immediately adjacent to the enhancing (hyperintense on T2-weighted images, but not enhancing on postcontrast T1-weighted images) portion of the tumor. Relative cerebral blood volumes in these regions were calculated from perfusion-weighted MR data. Spectra from the enhancing tumor, the peritumoral region, and normal brain were obtained from the two-dimensional spectroscopic MR acquisition. The Student t test was used to determine if there was a statistically significant difference in relative cerebral blood volume and metabolic ratios between high-grade gliomas and metastases. RESULTS: The measured relative cerebral blood volumes in the peritumoral region in high-grade gliomas and metastases were 1.31 +/- 0.97 (mean +/- SD) and 0.39 +/- 0.19, respectively. The difference was statistically significant (P
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)715-721
Number of pages7
JournalRadiology
Volume222
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Mar 2002

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