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Advances in Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Imaging Biomarkers

  • Neuroimaging (B Soares and S Dehkharghani, Section Editors)
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Abstract

Purpose of Review

Imaging diagnosis and prognostication of patients with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) remains elusive. The goal of this review is to highlight recent advancements in MR imaging biomarkers of mTBI.

Recent Findings

Susceptibility-weighted imaging and quantitative susceptibility mapping are more sensitive for microhemorrhages than conventional T2* sequences and may allow semi-automated detection of these lesions. Alterations in fractional anisotropy in mTBI have been well described; however, recent data suggest a time-dependent directionality to these changes. Functional MRI studies have recently reported abnormal connectivity following mTBI. Recent advances in whole-brain MR spectroscopy have allowed the characterization of global changes in TBI. However, variability in acquisition and analysis has limited inferences and generalizability of results.

Summary

While use of these techniques has advanced our understanding of mTBI, standardization in study design is needed. A large, multi-center, standardized study using these techniques could allow the translation of the methods from the research group level to the clinical individual level.

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Abbreviations

BOLD:

Blood-oxygen level dependent

DMN:

Default mode network

DKI:

Diffusion kurtosis imaging

DTI:

Diffusion tensor imaging

fMRI:

Functional MRI

GCS:

Glasgow coma scale

GRE:

Gradient echo

MRS:

Magnetic resonance spectroscopy

MD:

Mean diffusivity

MK:

Mean kurtosis

mTBI:

Mild traumatic brain Injury

PCA:

Principal component analysis

QSM:

Quantitative susceptibility mapping

rs-fMRI:

Resting-state fMRI

SWI:

Susceptibility-weighted imaging

TAI:

Traumatic axonal injury

TBI:

Traumatic brain injury

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Ronak N. Shah & Jason W. Allen

  2. Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, Emory University, 1364 Clifton Road NE, Suite BG20, Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA

    Ronak N. Shah & Jason W. Allen

  3. Department of Neurology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Jason W. Allen

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Ronak N. Shah and Jason W. Allen declare no potential conflicts of interest.

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Shah, R.N., Allen, J.W. Advances in Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Imaging Biomarkers. Curr Radiol Rep 5, 13 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40134-017-0210-3

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