Normal ascent of the conus medullaris: a post-mortem foetal MRI study

Background: Loss of myelin in the spinal cord in multiple sclerosis (MS) is likely an important, and early, contributor to atrophy and associated disability. In vivo measurement of myelin is possible using myelin water fraction (MWF) imaging, but MWF has never been assessed in MS along the entire length of the spinal cord in vivo or in post-mortem tissue. Objective: To assess the feasibility of measuring the distribution of MWF along the entire length of the spinal cord in post-mortem MS tissue using high-field MRI. Methods: One formalin-fixed spinal cord from a female with secondary progressive MS (age: 78 years, disease duration: 25 years) was cut into 104 5-mm-thick cross sections along the entire length of the spinal cord from the cervico-medullary junction to the conus medullaris and imaged using a 64 echo T2 relaxation experiment at 7T. Results: Myelin water maps showed cord anatomy in superb detail, white matter demonstrating a higher MWF than the grey matter. Anatomical variation in myelin distribution along cervical, thoracic and lumbar regions was observed. Lesions demonstrated myelin loss. Conclusion: Post-mortem myelin water imaging of formalin-fixed MS spinal cord is feasible.

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MRI Study of the Position of the Conus Medullaris in Patients With Lumbar Spinal Stenosis

Orthopedics ◽

10.3928/01477447-20120525-31 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 35 (6) ◽

pp. e899-e902 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Zhaoyu Ba ◽

Weidong Zhao ◽

Desheng Wu ◽

Yufeng Huang ◽

Heng Kan

Keyword(s):

Spinal Stenosis ◽

Lumbar Spinal Stenosis ◽

Conus Medullaris ◽

Mri Study ◽

Lumbar Spinal

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Topography of Cortical Microbleeds in Alzheimer’s Disease with and without Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy: A Post-Mortem 7.0-Tesla MRI Study

Aging and Disease ◽

10.14336/ad.2015.0429 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 6 (6) ◽

pp. 437 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

J. De Reuck ◽

F. Auger ◽

N. Durieux ◽

V. Deramecourt ◽

C. Cordonnier ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy ◽

Amyloid Angiopathy ◽

Post Mortem ◽

Cerebral Amyloid ◽

Mri Study

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Conus medullaris syndrome caused by spinal cord schistosomiasis: case report

10.5327/1516-3180.529 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Mariana de Souza Dias ◽

Matheus Felipe de Souza Vasconcelos

Keyword(s):

Spinal Cord ◽

Case Report ◽

Urinary Retention ◽

Conus Medullaris ◽

Lower Limbs ◽

Cns Involvement ◽

Hyperintense Signal ◽

Mri Study ◽

The Brain ◽

Loss Of Strength

Background: Neuroschistosomiasis is a rare but severe complication of schistosomiasis that is often underdiagnosed and can affect both the brain and the spinal cord. CNS involvement occurs during hepato-intestinal or intestinal phase of the disease, when the Schistosoma eggs or adult worms reach the vertebral venous plexuses via Batson plexuses. Objective: To report a case of a patient with conus medullaris syndrome caused by spinal cord schistosomiasis whose symptoms had great improvement after undergoing treatment with praziquantel and prednisone. Case report: A 45-year-old woman, from Bahia, Brazil, with no significant medical history, presented with intense pain in her legs from knees below, associated with progressive loss of strength, tingling and dysesthesias in both lower limbs, causing gait impairment followed by urinary retention. At physical examination, grade III paraparesis in proximal limbs and grade IV in distal limbs and unsteady dysbasic gait were observed, no meningeal signs were found. MRI study revealed hyperintense signal in medulla at the level of T12-L1 to conus medullaris in T2 sequences, mainly on central portions and medulla, also slight impregnation with gadolinium showing dotted pattern was observed, suggestive findings of inflammatory myelitis. KatoKatz test was performed evidencing Schistosoma eggs. After diagnosis, patient was treated with prednisone and praziquantel for 5 weeks. At the end the of treatment, she has showed progressive improvement of her symptoms. In our last evaluation, the patient showed a great recovery of movement and strength, now grade IV in proximal limbs and grade V in distal limbs as well as a steadier gait. Urinary retention is still present, and she still needs intermittent catheterization for the time being Conclusion: Neuroschistosomiasis, when symptomatic, is a severe disorder in which can cause significant incapacity and morbidity. It is an underdiagnosed disorder but has been increasingly reported in populations in endemic areas and in tourists. Prognosis depends largely on early diagnosis and treatment.

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Histological and MRI Study of the Development of the Human Indusium Griseum

Cerebral Cortex ◽

10.1093/cercor/bhz004 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 29 (11) ◽

pp. 4709-4724

Author(s):

Mihaela Bobić Rasonja ◽

Darko Orešković ◽

Vinka Knezović ◽

Ivana Pogledić ◽

Daniela Pupačić ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Adult Brain ◽

Post Mortem ◽

Cortical Organization ◽

Differentiation Pattern ◽

3.0 T ◽

Magnetic Resonance Imaging Mri ◽

Mri Study ◽

Human Brains ◽

Weighted Sequences

Abstract To uncover the ontogenesis of the human indusium griseum (IG), 28 post-mortem fetal human brains, 12–40 postconceptional weeks (PCW) of age, and 4 adult brains were analyzed immunohistochemically and compared with post-mortem magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of 28 fetal brains (14–41 PCW). The morphogenesis of the IG occurred between 12 and 15 PCW, transforming the bilateral IG primordia into a ribbon-like cortical lamina. The histogenetic transition of sub-laminated zones into the three-layered cortical organization occurred between 15 and 35 PCW, concomitantly with rapid cell differentiation that occurred from 18 to 28 PCW and the elaboration of neuronal connectivity during the entire second half of gestation. The increasing number of total cells and neurons in the IG at 25 and 35 PCW confirmed its continued differentiation throughout this period. High-field 3.0 T post-mortem MRI enabled visualization of the IG at the mid-fetal stage using T2-weighted sequences. In conclusion, the IG had a distinct histogenetic differentiation pattern than that of the neighboring intralimbic areas of the same ontogenetic origin, and did not show any signs of regression during the fetal period or postnatally, implying a functional role of the IG in the adult brain, which is yet to be disclosed.

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Severe holocord syrinx in a child with megalencephaly-capillary malformation syndrome

Journal of Neurosurgery Pediatrics ◽

10.3171/2016.1.peds15482 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

pp. 79-82 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Devorah Segal ◽

Robert F. Heary ◽

Sanjeev Sabharwal ◽

Maureen T. Barry ◽

Xue Ming

Keyword(s):

Vascular Malformations ◽

Chiari I Malformation ◽

Conus Medullaris ◽

Rapid Progression ◽

Brain Malformation ◽

Malformation Syndrome ◽

Suboccipital Craniectomy ◽

Capillary Malformation ◽

Significant Clinical Improvement ◽

Mri Study

The authors present the case of a child with megalencephaly-capillary malformation syndrome who developed a rapidly progressive holocord syringomyelia that was treated surgically. A 3-year-old boy with megalencephaly-capillary malformation-polymicrogyria (MCAP) syndrome presented with several months of right leg weakness, worsening scoliosis, and increased seizures. An MRI study of the brain demonstrated a Chiari I malformation and massively dilated syringomyelia extending from C-2 to the conus medullaris. The patient underwent an urgent suboccipital craniectomy with C1–3 laminectomies to relieve the CSF outflow obstruction with significant clinical improvement. Surgery was complicated by bleeding from intracranial vascular malformations. This report describes a very rapidly developing, massive holocord syringomyelia related to CSF obstruction due to an unusual congenital brain malformation and associated vascular overgrowth at the site. Serial, premorbid MRI studies demonstrated the very rapid progression from no Chiari malformation, to progressively greater cerebellar tonsillar herniation, to holocord syrinx. This complication has never been reported in MCAP syndrome and should be considered in any affected MCAP patient with a progressive neurological decline, even if previous spine imaging findings were normal. Surgical complications due to hemorrhage also need to be considered in this vascular brain malformation.

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Ultrastructural investigation of an adenoma of the pituitary post mortem

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100127542 ◽

1987 ◽

Vol 45 ◽

pp. 622-623

Author(s):

Shirley Siew ◽

W. C. deMendonca

Keyword(s):

Deleterious Effect ◽

Anterior Lobe ◽

Definitive Diagnosis ◽

Pars Intermedia ◽

Post Mortem ◽

Close Apposition ◽

Autopsy Material ◽

Progressive Loss ◽

Transmission Electron ◽

Means Of Transmission

The deleterious effect of post mortem degeneration results in a progressive loss of ultrastructural detail. This had led to reluctance (if not refusal) to examine autopsy material by means of transmission electron microscopy. Nevertheless, Johannesen has drawn attention to the fact that a sufficient amount of significant features may be preserved in order to enable the establishment of a definitive diagnosis, even on “graveyard” tissue.Routine histopathology of the autopsy organs of a woman of 78 showed the presence of a well circumscribed adenoma in the anterior lobe of the pituitary. The lesion came into close apposition to the pars intermedia. Its architecture was more compact and less vascular than that of the anterior lobe. However, there was some grouping of the cells in relation to blood vessels. The cells tended to be smaller, with a higher nucleocytoplasmic ratio. The cytoplasm showed a paucity of granules. In some of the cells, it was eosinophilic.

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