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Anything but Little: a Pictorial Review on Anatomy and Pathology of the Cerebellum

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Abstract

Despite its small size the cerebellum is an anatomically complex and functionally important part of the brain. Traditionally the cerebellum is viewed as a motor control structure entirely devoted to motor control and learning, but recent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies demonstrated significant involvement of the cerebellum in higher order cognitive functions. The anatomical complexity of the cerebellum is reflected by the several nomenclature systems that exist for the description of cerebellar anatomy. The cerebellum can be affected by a variety of pathological processes, including congenital, infectious and inflammatory, neoplastic, vascular, degenerative and toxic metabolic diseases. The purpose of this pictorial review is to (1) provide a general overview of cerebellar anatomy and function, (2) demonstrate normal cerebellar anatomy on imaging studies, and (3) illustrate both common as well as rare pathological conditions affecting the cerebellum.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Dr. Johannes Devos, Department of Radiology, UZ Gasthuiberg Leuven, Belgium and Dr. Sofie van Cauter Department of Radiologie, Ziekenhuis Oost-Limburg (ZOL) Genk, Belgium for providing cases.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiology and Medical Imaging, Ghent University Hospital (UZG), Corneel Heymanslaan 10, 9000, Gent, Belgium

    Sven Dekeyzer

  2. Department of Radiology, Antwerp University Hospital (UZA), Drie Eikenstraat 655, 2650, Edegem, Belgium

    Sven Dekeyzer & Stephanie Vanden Bossche

  3. Department of Radiology, AZ Sint Jan Bruges, Ruddershove 10, 8000, Bruges, Belgium

    Stephanie Vanden Bossche

  4. Department of Radiology, AZ Maria Middelares Gent, Buitenring-Sint-Denijs 30, 9000, Gent, Belgium

    Laurens De Cocker

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  1. Sven Dekeyzer
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Correspondence to Sven Dekeyzer.

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S. Dekeyzer, S. Vanden Bossche and L. De Cocker declare that they have no competing interests.

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Dekeyzer, S., Vanden Bossche, S. & De Cocker, L. Anything but Little: a Pictorial Review on Anatomy and Pathology of the Cerebellum. Clin Neuroradiol 33, 907–929 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00062-023-01326-7

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