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Alzheimer disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia in the aging people.The early diagnosis is very important to slow down the progression and improve the prognosis of AD.At present,most researches focus on the subjective cognitive decline (SCD),which is considered as the preclinical stage of AD.The use of biological markers to predict whether the progress of SCD to AD is necessary.The progresses of imaging studies on SCD were reviewed in this article.
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With the attention to CT radiation and contrast-induced nephropathy,the technology of "double low" CTA has been gradually applied in clinical practice and become a research hotspot in recent years.The "double low" CTA technology aims to reduce X-ray dose and iodine intake of subject in ensuring image quality to meet the diagnostic requirements.The concept of "double low",basic principles,scanning standard protocols and current status of clinical application of "double low" were reviewed in this paper.
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Objective To examine the nonhuman primate(NHP)model of acute cerebral infarction thrombus-thrombolysis using multi-parameter high-field magnetic resonance imaging(MRI). Methods Altogether, 8 adult male rhesus monkeys aged 8.2(± 1.2)years old and weighing 9.4(± 1.0)kg were randomized into an infarction group(n=4)and thrombolysis group(n =4). Middle cerebral artery occlusion(MCAO)was induced with a clot in the M1 segment. Monkeys in the thrombolysis group were treated with the recombinant tissue plasminogen activator, rt-PA, while those in the infarction group were treated with 0.9% NaCl only. T2 weighted imaging(T2WI), T2-weighted-fluid-attenuated inversion recovery(T2-FLAIR), time-of-flight magnetic resonance angiography(TOF-MRA), and diffusion-weighted imaging(DWI)were used to examine all monkeys at 4 and 24 h after onset of ischemia. Results The rhesus monkey thrombus-thrombolysis model was successfully established. MRA showed that the middle cerebral artery(MCA) was not recanalized in the infarction group, but was recanalized in the thrombolysis group. T2WI sequence showed an increase in infarction volume(12 027 ± 5507 mm3)in the infarction group compared with the thrombolysis group(4910 ± 2764 mm3). DWI sequence showed an increase in infarction volume(9498 ± 5226 mm3)in the infarction group and thrombolysis group(4854 ± 1792 mm3). Both T2WI and DWI sequences showed no significant difference in infarction volume at 4 h between the two groups, while infarction volume in the thrombolysis group at 24 h was significantly lower compared with the infarction group. The increase in infarction volume was significantly lower in the thrombolysis group compared with the infarction group. Conclusions MRI sequences can be used to successfully evaluate recanalization and infarct changes in the thrombus-thrombolysis model in rhesus monkeys.
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Neuromyelitis optica (NMO) is an inflammatory-demyelinating disease of central nervous system that is characterized by severe attacks of optic neuritis (ON) and longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis (LETM).Conventional MRI is the most sensitive method in detection of NMO lesions in brain,spinal cord and optic nerve,which can objectively show the site,number,size and distribution of lesions.The MRI features of NMO lesion in brain,spinal cord and optic nerve lesions were reviewed in this article.
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The hybrid PET/MR has a unique advantage of simultaneous scanning of both PET and MRI images,which has been gradually applied in clinical practice.In the clinical studies of severe brain diseases (such as cerebrovascular disease,brain tumor and epilepsy),accurate quantification of cerebral blood flow (CBF) can help to understand the etiology,pathogenesis,and to make early diagnosis as well as therapeutic solutions.The hybrid PET/MR can implement a noninvasive,convenient and accurate method of arterial input function for quantification of CBF.The application of the hybrid PET/MR in quantification of cerebral blood flow were reviewed in this article.
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By taking Vrije University Medical Center as an example, this paper introduced the cur-rent Neuroradiologist education training system which had the characteristics of training in a comprehen-sive and focused way, multi-disciplinary integration and paying attention to the combination of academic and clinical research. Through the comparison of the status quo of China's sub specialist training, Neuro-radiologist education training system in the Netherlands provided an important reference for China's sub specialty training.
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Objective To explore a new index for reflecting the topological information of brain functional networks in patients at high risk of Alzheimer disease using characteristics of resting-state functional connectivity strengths(FCS) in patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment(aMCI). Methods Thirty-one aMCI patients and 42 age, gender and years of education matched normal controls were enrolled between September 2009 and April 2011 in this study. The resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) data of all participants were acquired and preprocessed. Then the whole-brain functional connectivities were constructed for exploring the distribution characteristics of hub regions which had higher FCS values. Using two-sample t test to compare group differences in age, years of education and each neuropsychological assessment. In addition, using Chi-squared test to compare group differences in gender. Group differences in FCS values were analyzed by general linear model. Finally, correlation analyses were used to evaluate the relationships between the FCS values of the brain regions with group differences and behavioral scores in aMCI patients. Results The hub regions of the functional networks in the aMCI patients were mainly located in the association cortices such as the precuneuses, posterior cingulate cortices, medial prefrontal cortices, angular gyri, superior occipital gyri, fusiform gyri and lingual gyri. The distribution models in the aMCI patients were consistent with those in the normal controls. However, the FCS values of these brain regions were significantly lower in the aMCI patients than those in the normal controls. In comparison to the normal controls, the aMCI patients had significantly decreased FCS values in the bilateral fusiform gyri, lingual gyri, superior occipital gyri, left middle occipital gyrus and postcentral gyrus (the cluster was 389, 230, 187 and 107 voxels, respectively;P<0.05, respectively), and they had decreased trends of FCS values in the bilateral posterior cingulate cortices and right insulas. The correlation analysis with uncorrected conditions showed that the FCS values of the left postcentral gyri were correlatid with the clock drawing test (CDT) scores (r=0.436, P=0.026). Conclusions aMCI mainly attacks the hub regions of brain functional networks. The changes of functional connectivities in aMCI may reflect the early pathophysiologic alterations of AD.
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Objective To explore the clinical characteristics of the lesions of spinal cord and optic nerve as the onset of neuromyelitis optica (NMO).Methods A total of fifty-one patients with myelitis or optic neuritis (ON) as the onset of NMO who hospitalized in our Neurology Department during October 2010 to October 2012 were enrolled in the study.Clinical presentations and MRI findings of the spinal cord and brain were studied.Results (1) A total of 26 cases (51.0％) presented with myelitis as the index event,in which 30.8％ (8/26) were the longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis (LETM) and 69.2％ (18/ 26) were non-LETM (short segmental myelitis or non-transverse myelitis).Patients with non-LETM as the onset were found to have better prognosis than those with LETM (full recovery ratio was 13/18 vs 2/8,P ＜ 0.05),while shorter recurrence interval of myelitis and higher recurrence frequency of events were shown in patients with non-LETM (11.1 vs 18.6 months,3 times per year vs once per year,with all P ＜ 0.05).(2) A total of 25 cases (49.0％) presented with ON as the index event with 24.0％ (6/25) of unilateral ON and 76.0％ (19/25) of bilateral ON.Patients with bilateral ON had more severe visual impairment and shorter first remission period than those with unilateral ON (P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion Non-LETM and bilateral ON are the most common index demyelinating events in NMO cases.
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Purpose Two kinds of forward conditional reasoning including modus ponens (MP) and denial of the antecedent (DA) are the most common deductive reasoning in daily life. The present study aimed to explore the difference between the two neural machanisms. Materials and Methods Three kinds of tasks including MP, DA, and baseline were administrated to 14 undergraduates [7 males and 7 females, mean age (23.4±1.3) years] by using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) technique. fMRI data was analyzed. Results The reaction times were significantly slower for MP and DA than that of BS (P<0.001), while the effect was not significant for accuracy. In contrast to baseline, both MP and DA tasks activated the left inferior frontal cortex (BA 9), inferior parietal lobule (BA 40), and postcentral gyrus. Bilateral caudate significant activation was found in MP task when compared with DA, whereas the frontal, parietal, occipital lobe and anterior cingulate cortex were acivated more in the DA than in MP task. Conclusion Both forward conditional reasoning of MP and DA commonly activate the left frontoparietal cortex, while significant dissociations can be seen in the regions of caudate and bilateral frontal, parietal and occipital. These results firstly demonstrates the different neural mechanism underlying the two forward conditional reasoning, which might help to further uncover the brain mechanism of conditional reasoning.
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Objective In recent years , multivariate pattern analysis ( MVPA) method was proposed and considered to be a promising tool for automated identification of various neuropsychiatric populations .Support vector machine ( SVM) is one of the most widely used methods of MVPA .Using SVM classifier for MVPA of amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and normal control (NC) group, the present study aims to build an individual diagnostic model with significant discriminative power and investigate the gray matter abnor-malities of aMCI patients . Methods Fifty-one aMCI patients and 68 normal controls were scanned on the 3-Tesla magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for high-resolution T1-weighted images.Gray matter volume map was calculated for each subject and used as features for subsequent discriminative analysis .We first applied feature selection to remove redundant information and reduce feature dimension , and then trained an SVM classifier . Leave-one-out cross validation ( LOOCV) was used to estimate the performance of the classifier , and finally the most discriminative features were identified . Results The proposed classifier achieved a classification accuracy of 83.19%with a sensitivity of 76.47%and a specificity of 88.24%.In ad-dition, the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was 0.8368.Further analysis revealed that the most discrimi-native features for classification included bilateral parahippocampal gyri , bilateral hippocampi , bilateral amygdala , bilateral thalamus , right cingulate , right precuneus , left caudate , left superior temporal gyrus , left middle temporal gyrus , left insula and left orbitofrontal cortex. Conclusion The proposed classification model has achieved significant accuracy for aMCI prediction , and it also displayed the whole brain gray matter atrophy pattern in aMCI patients .It suggests that the proposed method may have important implications for early clinical diagnosis of aMCI patients .
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By taking American Penn State University Medical Center as an example, the paper introduced the current American radiology resident education training situation and elaborated the radiology resident rotation system, multiform teaching model and academic research training. Medical education in American sheds light on how to reasonably arrange rotation, mobilize students' subjective initiative and improve scientific research ability, which radiology resident medical education in China can draw lessons from.
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Objective To investigate the changes of amplitude of low frequency fluctuation (ALFF) of the resting state fMRI in cognitively impaired Parkinson' s disease patients and discuss its underling neurophysiological mechanism.Methods Blood oxygen level-dependent low-frequency amplitude (ALFF) in resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging were calculated in 16 healthy controls(HC) and 29 idiopathic Parkinson's disease patients (16 of which were patients with cognitive normal,PDCN and 13 with cognitive impairment,PDCI).The brain regions showing increased and decreased ALFF in patients were demonstrated by comparing normal subjects with 2-sample t-test with threshold of P＜ 0.05 and the analysis of the relationship between the different regions of the brain activity and cognitive function tests scores were also analyzed.Results Compared with PDCN,the PDCI patients showed decreased activity in the caudate nucleus (-3,9,12),occipital lobe (0,-78,-15) and medial temporal lobe (42,9,-27) and increased activity in the superior frontal gyrus (9,63,24).PDCI patients showed increased activity mainly in the precuneus and inferior parietal lobules compared with controls.Additionally,the regions with ALFF changes had significant correlations with the cognitive performance of patients as measured by Montreal cognitive test(Beijing Version) and neuropsychological tests (including memory,attention,visuospatial functions and executive function).Conclusion The results demonstrate that there is a specific pattern of intrinsic activity in PDCI providing insights into neurophysiological mechanisms of the Parkinson's disease dementia.
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ObjectiveTo explore the normal range of the volume of internal capsules in Chinese adults of the Han nationality and its relationship with age,body habitus,and craniocerebral volume.Methods One thousand healthy volunteers (age range =18 to 80 years) were divided into 5 groups according to their age;Group A ( 18 to 30 years old),group B (31 to 40 years),group C (41 to 50 years),group D (51 to 60 years),and group E (61 to 80 years).Each group consisted of 100 males and 100 females.MR imaging was performed in all of the volunteers using T1 weighted three-dimensional nagnetization prepared rapid acquisition gradient echo sequence. After three dimension data reconstruction,the volumes of bilateral internal capsules were manually measured. The volumes of bilateral internal capsules were compared by paired sample t test.The internal capsule volumes were compared between male and female by independent sample t test,and the differences among 5 age groups were compared by one-way ANOVA.The relationship between the volumes of internal capsule and age,body habitus or cerebral volume were analyzed using bivariate correlation.ResultsThe left and right internal capsule volumes were (2809 ± 393) and (2677 ± 343 ) mm3 respectively.The left internal capsule volumes were significantly larger than that of right (t =12.078,P ＜ 0.05 ).The left and right side of internal capsule volumes in male were (2863 ± 396) and (2744 ±358) mm3 respectively,and (2754 ±385) and (2609 ±314) mm3 in female.The left and right internal capsule volumes were larger in males than in female (t =1.982,2.851 ;P ＜ 0.05 ).The left internal capsule volume of the 5 age groups were ( 3273 ± 361 ),( 2943 ± 299 ),( 2777 ± 255 ),( 2607 ± 199 ),(2444 ±213) mm3,and the right were (2993 ± 361 ),(2814 ± 270),(2682 ± 239),(2543 ± 219),(2351 ±210) mm3.There were significant differences among 5 age groups between left and right internal capsule volume ( F =55.244,34.493 ; P ＜ 0.05 ).There was significant negative correlation between the volume of left and right internal capsule and age ( r =- 0.718,- 0.637 ; P ＜ 0.05 ).Conclusions1.5 T MR scanner can be used to accurately measure the internal capsule volumes.There is a significant negative correlation between age and internal capsule volumes.
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Objective To detect changes of regional grey matter and white matter volume in patients of neuromyelitis optica (NMO) by voxel-based morphometry (VBM),and investigate its relationship with clinical variables.Methods Conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and structural threedimensional MRI were obtained from 20 NMO and 20 sex-and age-matched healthy volunteers.The comparison of grey matter and white matter volume between the two groups was analyzed by VBM tools of statistical parametric mapping (SPM) 5.Pearson correlational analysis was used to assess correlations between regional volume decrease and disease duration and expanded disability status scale (EDSS) scores in NMO patients.Results Compared with normal controls,NMO patients had grey matter atrophy in several cortical regions,such as right inferior frontal gyrus (cluster size 514),left superior temporal gyrus (282),right middle temporal gyvus (229) and right insula (211) (t =3.58-5.11,AlphaSim corrected,P ＜0.05).White matter atrophy was found in several subcortical regions in NMO patients,such as right precentral and postcentral gyrus (cluster size 457,110),left middle frontal gyrus (285),and right inferior parietal lobule (231) (t =2.90-4.25,AlphaSim corrected,P ＜ 0.05).Grey matter and white matter volume loss were not significantly correlated with clinical duration or EDSS score in NMO.Conclusion By means of VBM,regional atrophy of grey matter and white matter is found in NMO patients,which may provide evidence for brain structural abnormality in NMO.
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Problem-based learning(PBL)brought many changes in the teaching model of medical education.This article explored the clinical application of PBL combined with picture archiving communicate system(PACS)in medical imaging education.Through comparing the results before and after periodic study,PBL was verified to motivate the students'learning interest.Enthusiasm of autonomic learning and problem analysis ability of students increased evidently,which provided a substantial basis for continued learning.
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ObjectiveTo measure the volume of thalamus in 1000 healthy Chinese Han nationality adults,and to analyze the relationship between thalamic volume and age,sex,weight and cerebral volume,to provide reliable data for the construction of database of Chinese adults' digital standard brain.Methods Totally 1000 healthy Chinese adults of Han nationality aged from 18 to 80 years were recruited.They were divided into 5 groups by age:18-30,31-40,41-50,51-60 and 61-80 years.Each group included 100 males and 100 females.Brain images were obtained on a 1.5 T MR,and the outline of thalami was drawn with Aquariusws software.Then the thalamic volume was calculated automatically.The volumes of left and right thalamus were compared by paired sample t-test.Thalamic volumes of the same side were compared between males and females by independent sample t-test.And thalamic volumes of different age groups were compared by one-way ANOVA.The relationships between thalamic volume and age,sex,weight and cerebral volume were analyzed respectively.ResultsThe males' standardized volumes of left and right thalamus of healthy Chinese Han nationality adults were (5776 ± 780),(5655 ± 759) mm3,and they were (5464 ±573 ),(5360 ± 542) mm3 for female.The males' thalamic volume was more than the females' on the same side ( t =2.245,2.200,P ＜ 0.01 ).The left thalamic volumes of various age groups were ( 6180 ± 534 ),(6047 ± 562 ),( 5426 ± 471 ),( 5552 ± 526 ),( 4866 ± 552 ) mm3,respectively,while the right thalamic volumes of the 5 groups were ( 6069 ± 532 ),( 5895 ± 539 ),( 5357 ± 480 ),( 5396 ± 445 ),( 4791 ± 558)mm3,respectively.There were statistically significant difference among the 5 groups( F =165.686,165.235,P ＜ 0.01 ).The left and right thalamic volume were all negatively correlated with age ( r =- 0.633,-0.645,P ＜ 0.05 ).ConclusionsWith high resolution 1.5 T MR scanner,grey matter and white matter can be depicted clearly and the outline of thalamic can be discriminated specifically.It is useful for the measurement of thalamic volume and scientific data to build Chinese adults' digital standard brain.
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Objective To investigate the feature of regional grey matter volume changes in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) patients by voxel-based morphometry ( VBM) and presume the possible pathophysiological basis.Methods Conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and T1-weighted three-dimensional MRI were obtained from 32 RRMS and 32 sex- and age-matched normal controls.The comparison of grey matter volume between the two groups was analyzed by statistical analysis software SPM5 and VBM.A Pearson correlational analysis was used to assess correlation between gre matter loss and disease duration,expanded disability status scale (EDSS) and visible brain lesion volume.Results Compared with normal controls,RRMS patients had extensive bilateral grey matter atrophy in thalami (left 2031 and right 1711),caudate (left 815 and right 1031) and parahippocampal gyrus (left 313 and right 467),as well as several cortical regions in frontal,temporal,parietal,and occipital lobes (t value were between 8.853 and 11.163,all P ＜ 0.01).Regional grey matter loss in bilateral thalami ( r value were - 0.596 on left and were - 0.694 on right) and right caudate ( r = - 0.409 ) were strongly negatively correlated with visible brain lesion volume in RRMS (all P ＜ 0.05 ).Conclusions By means of VBM,extensive grey matter atrophy are found in RRMS patients,especially in deep grey matter.Axonal degeneration secondary to visible brain lesions may be a key pathogenesis of grey matter atrophy in RRMS.
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Objective To investigate the feature brain damage and clinical manifestations in neuromyelitis optica (NMO) patients; To investigate the relationship between serum NMO-IgG antibody and NMO brain damage. Methods Clinical data of 37 NMO patients and their head and spinal cord MRI by 1.5T superconducting MR scanner, were analyzed; serum NMO-IgG antibody were measured by immunofluorescence. Results 17 cases were found to have abnormal signals on MRI, which were mainly in the white matter, pons, medulla, ventricle, aqueduct, and around the corpus callosum; According to pathological changes, brain damage can be divided into scattered irregularity (13 cases), fusion (3 cases),multiple sclerosis-like (1 case) ,with scattered irregularity more common,5 cases had clinical manifestations of brain damage: somnolence, vomiting, diplopia, visual rotation, 11 cases patients with brainstem damage show positive serum NMO-IgG antibodies. Conclusions Brain damage can be seen in half of NMO patients, they often located in the high expression area of AQP4: brain white matter, periventricular,brainstem and so on. Clinical symptoms has nothing to do with the size of lesions but the location, they often occur when brainstem was involved. Serum NMO-IgG is helpful in differentiating NMO with brain damage and MS.
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Objective To investigate any effects of rubbing acupoints on the right leg on activation and deactivation responses in the human cerebellum. Methods Ten male, healthy, right-handed subjects were examined using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while their Zusanli (ST36) , Yanglingquan (GB34),Fenglong (ST40) and Sanyinjiao (SP6) acupoints on the right lower extremity were stimulated. A block-designed method was applied. A piece of sponge was used to rub all the above-mentioned acupoints for stimulation. The mean values of the activation and deactivation signals in different cerebellar zones induced by stimulating each acupoint were calculated.Results Each acupoint could modulate cerebellum function in its specific way, but all acupoints induced the largest mean values in the Vermis Crus I area. The largest deactivation effects for all acupoints except Sanyinjiao were located in the Vermis VI area. For each acupoint, left and right side activation effects of the 20 zones of the cerebellum were basically consistent, though the mean values of most zones were higher on the right side. Conclusions The four acupoints studied not only shared common modulating effects, but also showed point-specific influence on cerebellum function. The effects exerted by each acupoint on the Vermis were greater than that on the cerebellar hemispheres. The phenomena observed in this study could contribute to acupoint selection during rehabilitation.
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Objective To study the morphological characteristics of pituitary glands in healthy adult of the Han nationality on the High-resolution MRI and provide morphological data of pituitary glands for the construction of database for Chinese Standard Brain.Methods This is a clinical multi-center study.Nine hundred and seventy eight Chinese healthy volunteers (age range = 18 to 70) recruited from 16 hospitals were divided into 5 groups, i.e., Group A ( age range = 18 to 30), B ( age range = 31 to 40), C ( age range = 41 to 50), D ( age range = 51 to 60 ), and E ( age range = 61 to 70).All of the volunteers were scanned by MR using T, weighted three-dimensional magnetization prepared rapid acquisition gradient echo sequence.By Multiplan reconstruction with 3D software, the pituitary gland's volume, size, and inclination of pituitary stalk were measured and the differences between sexualities and among age groups were compared by analysis of variance using SPSS13.0; those among five age groups were compared pair-wised by Tukey analysis; and the differences between male and female were analyzed by independent t test, and the differences of measurements of typing of pituitary glands were analyzed by Chi-square analysis.Results( 1 ) Volume of pituitary glands: the mean volume of male and female among 5 age groups were ( 1142±290), (996±223), (979 ±178), (971 ±174), (930 ±189) and (1247 ±210), (1199 ±216),( 1108 ± 196), ( 1059 ± 212 ), (984 ± 177 ) mm3 respectively.There were significant differences among the age groups(F = 13.811,27.091 ,P <0.01), the volume tended to decrease after 30 years old in male and 40 years old in female.Female has bigger volume than man in the same age group (P < 0.05).There were statistically correlation between sexes, age, typing, heights in middle sagittal width in coronal MR and anteroposterior diameter in middle sagittal MR.(2) The size of pituitary giands:the mean heights on middle sagittal MR images of male and female among 5 age groups were(6.6±1.5), (6.0±1.4), (5.6±1.1 ),(5.0±1.2), (4.9±1.4)and (7.9±1.6), (6.4±2.0), (5.6±1.7), (5.1±1.7), (4.4±1.4)mm respectively.There were significant difference among the age groups ( F = 24.582,62.978, P < 0.01 ).Females demonstrated larger pituitary glands than men in the age from 18 to 30 year old groups ( P < 0.01 ).The pituitary height tended to decline after 30 years old, minimum after 50 years old group in male and 40 years old in female.The heights were statistically correlated with sexes and age.The mean width in coronal MR images of male and female among 5 age groups were( 14.8± 1.8), ( 14.7 ± 1.4), ( 14.2±1.9), (14.3 ±2.1), (13.8 ±2.4) and (14.9±1.8), (15.8±1.7), (15.5±2.1), (15.6±2.2),( 14.9±2.1 ) mm respectively.There were significant difference among the age groups( F = 4.566,4.233,P<0.05),The width of pituitary before 30 years old and after 60 years old were smaller than the other groups (P <0.05 ), but man did not show this relationship.The widths were statistically correlation with sexes, age and weight.The mean anteroposterior diameter in middle sagittal images of male and female among 5 age groups were (11.2±1.2), (11.8±1.3), (11.8±1.5), (12.3±1.8), (12.2±2.0) and (11.9±1.3), (12.5±1.5), (12.4±1.5), (12.9±1.6), (12.7±1.6)mm respectively.There were significant difference among the age groups ( F = 7.270, 5.903, P < 0.01 ).Before 60 year old, the anteroposterior diameter was smaller in male than all female groups (P < 0.05 ), and there was a tendency to grow downwards with age.The anteroposterior diameter was statistically correlated with sexes and age.(3)The angle of inclination of pituitary stalks: on reconstructed coronal MRI imaging, the angle of inclination of pituitary stalk were in the middle, no significant differences in the angle measurements were found between male and female among 5 age groups ( P > 0.05).(4) The typing of pituitary glands in middle sagittal MR images : there were significant differences between each typing ( χ2 = 44.212, 107.518, P < 0.01 ), there was a tendency of pituitary upper border to depressed when age increased.Conclusions With highresolution MRI and 3D volumetric analytic software, volume and size of pituitary glands and the angle of inclination of pituitary stalks were accurately measured, and that provide morphological data of pituitary glands for the construction of database for Chinese Standard Brain.