Diffusion tensor imaging in pediatric transverse myelitis: a case study.

Nadia Barakat, M J Mulcahey, Pallav Shah, Amer Samdani, Laura Krisa, Scott Faro, Feroze B Mohamed

Shriners Hospital for Children, Philadelphia, PA 19140, USA. nbarakat@shrinenet.org

Journal of pediatric rehabilitation medicine 2012

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Transverse myelitis is diagnosed based on the presence of spinal cord inflammation and the absence of infection to the central nervous system. In support of these criteria, patients undergo lumbar puncture to determine Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) pleocytosis and un-enhanced or Gadolinium-enhanced spinal Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). We present the case of an 11~year-old previously healthy male who underwent a series of lab tests and MRI scans before a definite diagnosis of transverse myelitis four years prior to this study. The patient still shows deficits at the C4 cord level according to International Standards for Neurological Classification of Spinal Cord Injury (ISNCSCI) examination, however, his MRI results are negative, and his Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) results are close to values reported in healthy subjects.

Citation

Nadia Barakat, M J Mulcahey, Pallav Shah, Amer Samdani, Laura Krisa, Scott Faro, Feroze B Mohamed. Diffusion tensor imaging in pediatric transverse myelitis: a case study. Journal of pediatric rehabilitation medicine. 2012;5(4):281-6