gms | German Medical Science

58. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie e. V. (DGNC)

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC) e. V.

26. bis 29.04.2007, Leipzig

A standardized approach to do DTI-based fiber tracking. How to improve data analysis

Ein standardisierter DTI-basierter Tractographie-Algorithmus. Lässt sich die Auswertung verbessern?

Meeting Abstract

  • corresponding author J. Rathert - Klinik und Poliklinik für Neurochirurgie, Johann-Wolfgang-Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main
  • E. Hattingen - Institut für Neuroradiologie, Johann-Wolfgang-Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main
  • E. Hermann - Klinik und Poliklinik für Neurochirurgie, Johann-Wolfgang-Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main
  • T. Gasser - Klinik und Poliklinik für Neurochirurgie, Johann-Wolfgang-Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main
  • V. Seifert - Klinik und Poliklinik für Neurochirurgie, Johann-Wolfgang-Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main
  • A. Raabe - Klinik und Poliklinik für Neurochirurgie, Johann-Wolfgang-Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie. 58. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie e.V. (DGNC). Leipzig, 26.-29.04.2007. Düsseldorf: German Medical Science GMS Publishing House; 2007. DocSA.05.07

The electronic version of this article is the complete one and can be found online at: http://www.egms.de/en/meetings/dgnc2007/07dgnc163.shtml

Published: April 11, 2007

© 2007 Rathert et al.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/deed.en). You are free: to Share – to copy, distribute and transmit the work, provided the original author and source are credited.


Outline

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Objective: Since introduction of indirect white matter tractography by diffusion tensor imaging-based fibertracking for preoperative planning, there is evidence that the resulting fibre bundle is underestimated with increasing distance from the seeding volume. To provide more accurate information concerning the extension of the bundle in the region near the lesion (ROI), we retrospectively evaluated a standard approach for visualisation of the pyramidal tract (PT) with an additional tracking step.

Methods: In 20 patients with deep white matter lesions adjacent to the PT, fiber tracking of the PT was done using a standard approach. Therefore diffusion tensor imaging (12 diff. directions) was acquired employing a 3 Tesla MR-scanner. The standard approach defined seeding volumes along the precentral gyrus according to anatomical and functional imaging. The second seed volume was located in the brainstem selecting only the fibers passing through both seeding volumes. The resulting bundle was confirmed by anatomical landmarks and segmented three-dimensionally (iPlan 2.5Cranial, BrainLab®, Heimstetten). The area of minimal distance between lesion and PT (less then 10mm) defined the ROI and a new seeding volume was located in that ROI including the former bundle with an additional margin of 5mm. Fiber tracking and segmentation was performed by selecting fibers which reach the capsula interna and the precentral gyrus. The extension of the resulting bundle was compared with the bundle from the standard tracking.

Results: Standard and additional fiber tracking succeeded in all patients. The region of interest expanded up to a size of 32mm along the PT. By comparing the bundles from the standard with the additional fiber tracking within the ROI, the extension of the additional bundle increases up to 4,2mm.

Conclusions: The underestimation of the standard approach for indirect visualisation of the PT by DTI-based fiber tracking can be improved within the region of surgeons interest by employing an additional fiber tracking which uses the standard approach as a guide. The resulting size gain contributes to the safety margin, demanded in former studies. Further investigation to prove the accuracy of the resulting fiber bundle has to be done.