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Historically,
the use of MRI scan
was to study the brain, opening new horizons in the diagnosis of
neurological diseases. MRI was the only method to visualize the
plaques of multiple sclerosis and to determine the activity of
inflammatory demyelination. To date, MRI scan has become the main
method of brain imaging, pushing into the background computed
tomography (CT). Modern techniques of MRI brain can provide
information about blood flow at the capillary level (perfusion MRI)
to quantify the movement of water molecules through the cell membrane
(diffusion MRI), to determine the concentration of metabolites in the
brain or brain tissue to measure the pH, to visualize the course of
pathways of the brain, such as corticospinal tract (MR tractography)
to map functional areas of the cerebral cortex, such as motor or
speech cortex (fMRI). The application of new MRI features can
significantly improve the treatment of patients with brain tumors,
including by determining the area of greatest
malignancy for its stereotactic biopsy, as well as modeling and
planning of invasive surgery with preservation of the vital functions
of the brain.
In
patients with acute stage of stroke MRI scan allows to differentiate
hemorrhagic and ischemic lesions predict the development of cerebral
infarction and to determine the indications for thrombolytic therapy.
In
patients with pituitary microadenomas or acoustic neuroma MRI brain
scan detect tumors at an early stage, long before the CT features.
