An Imaging Based Approach to Spinal Cord Infection

Publication date: Available online 2 June 2016 Source:Seminars in Ultrasound, CT and MRI Author(s): Jason F. Talbott, Jared Narvid, J. Levi Chazen, Cynthia T. Chin, Vinil Shah Infections of the spinal cord, nerve roots, and surrounding meninges are uncommon, but highly significant given their potential for severe morbidity and even mortality. Prompt diagnosis can be life-saving, as many spinal infections are treatable. Advances in imaging technology have now firmly established MRI as the gold standard for spinal cord imaging evaluation, enabling the depiction of infectious myelopathies with exquisite detail and contrast. In this review, we aim to provide an overview of MRI findings for spinal cord infections with special focus on imaging patterns of infection which are primarily confined to the spinal cord, spinal meninges, and spinal nerve roots. In this context, we describe and organize this review around 5 distinct patterns of transverse spinal abnormality that may be detected with MRI as follows; 1) extra-medullary, 2) centromedullary, 3) eccentric, 4) frontal horn, and 5) irregular. We seek to classify the most common presentations for a wide variety of infectious agents within this image-based framework while realizing that significant overlap and variation exists, including some infections which remain occult with conventional imaging techniques.

Source: Seminars in Ultrasound, CT and MRI - June 1, 2016 Category: Radiology Source Type: research