RESUMO
OBJECTIVES: The authors have studied the clinical outcome of patients with diffuse axonal injuries(DAI) to evaluate the prognostic value of gradient-echo MR imaging findings. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From March 1995 to March 1998, there were nineteen patients with DAI whose initial Glasgow coma scales were eight or less. Authors divided them into two groups according to Glasgow outcome scales;those patients with GOS 3 or less(group A;9) and those with 4 or more(group B;10). We subdivided the lesions as superficial and deep lesion, and analyzed the numbers, anatomical loci of the lesions on the gradient echo images of each group. RESULTS: Mean numbers of the lesions were 15 per case in group A(135/9) and 10 in group B(100/10). The common loci involved in DAI were cerebral cortex, brain stem, and corpus callosum. Cortical lesions were 31.1% in group A(42/135) and 47% in group B(47/100). Brain stem lesions were 25.9%(35/135) and 15%(15/100) each. Callosal lesions were 31.1%(26/135) and 13%(13/100) each. The frequency of callosal and brain stem lesions was significantly different between two groups(p<0.05). We divided callosal lesions as genu, body, and splenium and body lesions as anterior, middle, posterior, but no significant topographical difference of lesions was observed between two groups. Deep lesions were observed more frequently in group A(58.5%, 79/135) than group B(36%, 36/100). CONCLUSION: The poor outcome group showed more numbers of lesion and more frequent involvement of brain stem and corpus callosum than favorable outcome group. Gradient-echo MR imaging seems to have predictive value for clinical outcome in patients with DAI.