Postmortem Diffusion-Weighted Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Brain in Perinatal Death: An Animal Control Study to Detect the Influence of Postmortem Interval

Abstract: Objectives: Diffusion-weighted imaging may be useful as part of a postmortem magnetic resonance imaging protocol. However, apart from the effect of temperature on apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), normal postmortem ADC changes can influence the interpretation. Therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the correlation between normal ADC changes and postmortem intervals (PMIs) and develop a reference standard for postmortem changes after temperature correction. Materials and Methods: Six premature lambs were scanned at different PMIs. ADC values were measured at different parenchymal locations. Correlation and linear regression between ADC values and PMI were analyzed for all locations, both uncorrected and corrected for temperature. Results: All locations showed a significant negative correlation between the PMI and ADC value, with (R2 = 0.581–0.837, P
Source: Topics in Magnetic Resonance Imaging - Category: Radiology Tags: Original Article Source Type: research