Does diffusion tensor data reflect pathological changes in the spinal cord with chronic injury?

This study investigates if diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) can detect early pathological changes in chronic cervical spondylotic myelopathy, a condition involving spinal cord compression. A novel spongy polyurethane material was implanted in rats to mimic chronic spinal cord compression, and DTI was used to assess changes in the spinal cord. The study found that DTI parameters, such as fractional anisotropy and average diffusion coefficient, correlated with pathological changes observed in the spinal cord tissue.

• 1
  The fractional anisotropy value gradually decreased over time (4 hours to 1 week) after spinal cord injury in the rat model.
• 2
  The average diffusion coefficient increased at 72 hours and 1 week after injury, indicating changes in water diffusion within the spinal cord tissue.
• 3
  Histological analysis confirmed that the number of neurons and the density of nerve fibers in the spinal cord decreased with prolonged compression time.