Role of magnetic resonant diffusion-weighted imaging in evaluation of acute cerebral stroke

ObjectivesThis study aimed to show the role of diffusion-weighted MRI (DWI) in the diagnosis of acute stroke.BackgroundDWI is highly sensitive in detecting early cerebral ischemic changes in acute stroke patients. In this study, we compared the role of DWI with that of conventional MRI techniques. Furthermore, we compared the size of ischemic lesions on DWI scans with the fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) images.Materials and methodsWe performed T1-weighted imaging (T1WI), T2-weighted imaging (T2WI), FLAIR, and DWI MRI in 30 patients who presented with acute stroke. T1WI, T2WI, FLAIR, and DWI were performed for all patients and an apparent diffusion coefficient map on only 10 patients. The size of ischemic lesions was measured on DWI and FLAIR images.ResultsWith DWI, 100% of the ischemic lesions were detected, with FLAIR recovery 83% were detected, whereas with T1-weighted and T2-weighted images, only 63% of lesions were identified. The size of the lesion on DWI scans was larger than the FLAIR images, particularly in patients examined within the first 6 h of stroke onset.ConclusionDWI is more sensitive than conventional MRI in detecting early ischemic lesions in acute stroke patients. The size of the lesions measured on DWI and FLAIR images in the first 6 h was larger than those measured between 6 h and 3 days. MRI is recommended strongly for the accurate diagnosis of acute stroke.