Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Visualization of cerebellar peduncles using diffusion tensor imaging

  • Technical Note - Neurosurgical Anatomy
  • Published:
Acta Neurochirurgica Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The cerebellum communicates with the cerebral cortex via the superior, middle, and inferior cerebellar peduncles (CPs). To preserve the structure and function of the brainstem and cerebellum, which is compressed in various pathological conditions, it is important to delineate the spatial interrelationship of the CPs for presurgical planning and intraoperative guidance. Diffusion tensor tractography (DTT) is a technique capable of depicting the major fiber bundles in CPs. However, routine use of this technology for brainstem visualization remains challenging due to the anatomical smallness and complexity of the brainstem and susceptibility-induced image distortions. Here, we attempt to visualize CPs using high-resolution DTT in a commercial equipment for the application of this technique in normal clinical settings. DTT and fast imaging employing steady-state acquisition-cycled phases (FIESTA) of the whole brainstem were performed. We rendered the DTT fiber bundle using a region-of-interest–based fiber tracking method onto the structural image generated in FIESTA by automatic image coregistration. Fibers of the CPs were clearly visualized by DTT. The DTT-FIESTA overlaid image revealed the cross-sectional and three-dimensional anatomy of the pyramidal tract and the ascending sensory fibers, in addition to the CPs. This could indicate a geometrical relationship of these fibers in the brainstem. The CPs could be visualized clearly using DTT within clinically acceptable scanning times. This method of visualizing the exact pathway of fiber bundles and cranial nerves in the skull base helps in the planning of surgical approaches.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

References

  1. Jacquesson T, Yeh FC, Panesar S, Barrios J, Attye A, Frindel C, Cotton F, Gardner P, Jouanneau E, Fernandez-Miranda JC (2019) Full tractography for detecting the position of cranial nerves in preoperative planning for skull base surgery: technical note. J Neurosurg:1–11

  2. Meola A, Yeh FC, Fellows-Mayle W, Weed J, Fernandez-Miranda JC (2016) Human connectome-based tractographic atlas of the brainstem connections and surgical approaches. Neurosurgery 79:437–455

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Yagmurlu K, Rhoton AL Jr, Tanriover N, Bennett JA (2014) Three-dimensional microsurgical anatomy and the safe entry zones of the brainstem. Neurosurgery 10(Suppl 4):602–619 discussion 619-620

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Bello L, Gambini A, Castellano A, Carrabba G, Acerbi F, Fava E, Giussani C, Cadioli M, Blasi V, Casarotti A, Papagno C, Gupta AK, Gaini S, Scotti G, Falini A (2008) Motor and language DTI fiber tracking combined with intraoperative subcortical mapping for surgical removal of gliomas. NeuroImage 39:369–382

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Conturo TE, Lori NF, Cull TS, Akbudak E, Snyder AZ, Shimony JS, McKinstry RC, Burton H, Raichle ME (1999) Tracking neuronal fiber pathways in the living human brain. Proc Natl Acad Sci 96:10422–10427

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Nelles M, Gieseke J, Flacke S, Lachenmayer L, Schild HH, Urbach H (2008) Diffusion tensor pyramidal tractography in patients with anterior choroidal artery infarcts. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 29:488–493

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Reich DS, Smith SA, Jones CK, Zackowski KM, van Zijl PC, Calabresi PA, Mori S (2006) Quantitative characterization of the corticospinal tract at 3T. Am J Neuroradiol 27:2168–2178

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Yoo YJ, Kim JW, Kim JS, Hong BY, Lee KB, Lim SH (2019) Corticospinal tract integrity and long-term hand function prognosis in patients with stroke. Front Neurol 10:374

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Fernandez-Miranda JC, Pathak S, Engh J, Jarbo K, Verstynen T, Yeh FC, Wang Y, Mintz A, Boada F, Schneider W, Friedlander R (2012) High-definition fiber tractography of the human brain: neuroanatomical validation and neurosurgical applications. Neurosurgery 71:430–453

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Tang Y, Sun W, Toga AW, Ringman JM, Shi Y (2018) A probabilistic atlas of human brainstem pathways based on connectome imaging data. Neuroimage 169:227–239

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Aggarwal M, Zhang J, Pletnikova O, Crain B, Troncoso J, Mori S (2013) Feasibility of creating a high-resolution 3D diffusion tensor imaging based atlas of the human brainstem: a case study at 11.7T. NeuroImage 74:117–127

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Ford AA, Colon-Perez L, Triplett WT, Gullett JM, Mareci TH, FitzGerald DB (2013) Imaging white matter in human brainstem. Front Hum Neurosci 7:400

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Stieltjes B, Kaufmann WE, van Zijl PC, Fredericksen K, Pearlson GD, Solaiyappan M, Mori S (2001) Diffusion tensor imaging and axonal tracking in the human brainstem. Neuroimage 14:723–735

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Wakana S, Jiang H, Nagae-Poetscher LM, van Zijl PC, Mori S (2004) Fiber tract-based atlas of human white matter anatomy. Radiology 230:77–87

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Peoples JJ, Bisleri G, Ellis RE (2019) Deformable multimodal registration for navigation in beating-heart cardiac surgery. Int J Comput Assist Radiol Surg 14:955–966

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Zhang H, Yushkevich PA, Alexander DC, Gee JC (2006) Deformable registration of diffusion tensor MR images with explicit orientation optimization. Med Image Anal 10:764–785

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Akakin A, Peris-Celda M, Kilic T, Seker A, Gutierrez-Martin A, Rhoton A Jr (2014) The dentate nucleus and its projection system in the human cerebellum: the dentate nucleus microsurgical anatomical study. Neurosurgery 74:401–424 discussion 424-405

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Habas C, Cabanis EA (2007) Anatomical parcellation of the brainstem and cerebellar white matter: a preliminary probabilistic tractography study at 3 T. Neuroradiology 49:849–863

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Kamali A, Kramer LA, Butler IJ, Hasan KM (2009) Diffusion tensor tractography of the somatosensory system in the human brainstem: initial findings using high isotropic spatial resolution at 3.0 T. Eur Radiol 19:1480–1488

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Mamata H, Mamata Y, Westin CF, Shenton ME, Kikinis R, Jolesz FA, Maier SE (2002) High-resolution line scan diffusion tensor MR imaging of white matter fiber tract anatomy. Am J Neuroradiol 23:67–75

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Nagae-Poetscher LM, Jiang HY, Wakana S, Golay X, van Zijl PCM, Mori S (2004) High-resolution diffusion tensor imaging of the brain stem at 3 T. Am J Neuroradiol 25:1325–1330

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Prats-Galino A, Soria G, Md N, Puig J, Pedraza S (2012) Functional anatomy of subcortical circuits issuing from or integrating at the human brainstem. Clin Neurophysiol 123:4–12

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Salamon N, Sicotte N, Alger J, Shattuck D, Perlman S, Sinha U, Schultze-Haakh H, Salamon G (2005) Analysis of the brain-stem white-matter tracts with diffusion tensor imaging. Neuroradiology 47:895–902

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Burkett DJ, Garst JR, Hill JP, Kam A, Anderson DE (2017) Deterministic tractography of the descending tract of the spinal trigeminal nerve using diffusion tensor imaging. J Neuroimaging 27:539–544

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Cha J, Kim ST, Kim H-J, Choi JW, Kim HJ, Jeon P, Kim KH, Byun HS, Park K (2011) Trigeminal neuralgia: assessment with T2 VISTA and FLAIR VISTA fusion imaging. Eur Radiol 21:2633–2639

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Bammer R, Auer M, Keeling SL, Augustin M, Stables LA, Prokesch RW, Stollberger R, Moseley ME, Fazekas F (2002) Diffusion tensor imaging using single-shot SENSE-EPI. Magn Reson Med 48:128–136

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Matsushima TRALJLC (1982) Microsurgery of the fourth ventricle: part 1 Microsurgical anatomy. Neurosurgery 11:7–631

    Google Scholar 

  28. Perrini P, Tiezzi G, Castagna M, Vannozzi R (2013) Three-dimensional microsurgical anatomy of cerebellar peduncles. Neurosurg Rev 36:215–224 discussion 224-225

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Thomas C, Ye FQ, Irfanoglu MO, Modi P, Saleem KS, Leopold DA, Pierpaoli C (2014) Anatomical accuracy of brain connections derived from diffusion MRI tractography is inherently limited. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 111:16574–16579

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. Nowacki A, Schlaier J, Debove I, Pollo C (2018) Validation of diffusion tensor imaging tractography to visualize the dentatorubrothalamic tract for surgical planning. J Neurosurg 130:99–108

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Sapporo Medical University Hospital, Chuo-ku, South-1, West-16, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan

    Hiroshi Nagahama, Toru Hirano, Mitsuhiro Nakanishi & Hiroyuki Takashima

  2. Department of Neurosurgery, Osaka Medical College, 2-7, Daigaku-cho, Takatsuki, Osaka, Japan

    Masahiko Wanibuchi

Authors
  1. Hiroshi Nagahama
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Masahiko Wanibuchi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Toru Hirano
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Mitsuhiro Nakanishi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Hiroyuki Takashima
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hiroshi Nagahama.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the institutional review board of Sapporo Medical University and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Additional information

Publisher’s note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

This article is part of the Topical Collection on Neurosurgical Anatomy

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Nagahama, H., Wanibuchi, M., Hirano, T. et al. Visualization of cerebellar peduncles using diffusion tensor imaging. Acta Neurochir 163, 619–624 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00701-020-04511-6

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00701-020-04511-6

Keywords

Search

Navigation