Value of susceptibility weighted imaging in grading brain tumors in children / 实用放射学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the value of susceptibility weighted imaging in grading brain tumors in children.Methods Twenty-eight children with surgically or pathologically proved primary brain tumor were recruited during 2010 to 201 1.All patients were scanned with conventional MRI and SWI sequences on a 1.5T or 3.0T scanner before surgery.The cases of tumors were divid-ed into low grade (9 males and 2 females)and high grade groups (10 males and 7 females),according to the WHO classification of the tumors of the central nervous system in 2007.The low-intense signals within the abnormalities on SWI images were analyzed and classified into the different shapes,including punctuate,tubular,cluster-like,linear signal,irregular patchy signal.As for the num-ber of low-intense signals,we applied the four-score system.The irregular patchy signals were considered to be artifacts of SWI, namely hemorrhage,after exclusion of the isolated veins and calcification.The differences of rate of hemorrhage and scores between the two groups in SWI were analyzed statistically.Results The low-signal scores were significantly different between two groups with higher scores in high grade tumors than in low grade tumors(P <0.001).The rate of intratumor hemorrhage was also signifi-cantly different between two groups.The rate is higher in high-grade group than low-grade group,given the fact that the hemor-rhage was showed in 2 low grade tumors (18.18%),while in 1 1 high grade tumors (76.37%)(P =0.01 5 9<0.001).Conclusion Different grades of pediatric brain tumors manifest significant difference on susceptibility weighted imaging(SWI).It may be helpful in the preoperative classification of brain tumors by analyzing the relevant signals on SWI.