QUANTITATIVE MRI OF SPINAL-CORD INJURY IN A RAT MODEL

Sequential in vivo MRI studies of experimental spinal cord injuries (S CI) were performed using a three-dimensional implementation of the FAT E (Fast low-Angle spin echo sequence with short TE) sequence. MRI-obse rved pathology was quantified using a multispectral segmentation algor ithm. Neurological analysis was performed on the same animals concurre ntly, in addition to end-point histology, for comparison with quantita tive MRI results. These studies suggest that it is possible to use MRI to detect the onset of secondary injury in the spinal cord. The data also indicate that early detection of MRI-visible pathology may provid e the necessary markers for predicting the long-term level of neurolog ic deficit.