Proton MR spectroscopy in clinical routine

In vivo magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) addresses metabolic pathways and their steady states in different tissue types. The brain has by traditi on, and due to technical limitations in other organs, been one of the tissu es most studied by MRS, and both H-1- and P-31-MRS have been used. Although P-31-MRS is outstanding for the evaluation of sources of metabolic energy in the brain, H-1-MRS has become the major clinically applied method in neu rospectroscopy, as it provides Information on markers of neuronal function, myelin, cell membranes, and metabolic active compounds. Furthermore, MR se nsitivity is much greater for protons than it is for phosphorus and H-1-MRS , therefore allowing better spatial resolution. This review focuses on neur ospectroscopy and diagnostic insights into diverse neurological problems pr ovided by H-1-MRS applied as a clinical tool. (C) 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc.