Utility of a pediatric fast magnetic resonance imaging protocol as surveillance scanning for traumatic brain injury

J Neurosurg Pediatr. 2021 Feb 5;27(4):475-481. doi: 10.3171/2020.8.PEDS20496. Print 2021 Apr 1.

Abstract

Objective: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a prevalent pediatric pathology in the modern emergency department. Computed tomography (CT) is utilized for detection of TBI and can result in cumulatively high radiation exposure. Recently, a fast brain magnetic resonance imaging (fbMRI) protocol has been employed for rapid imaging of hydrocephalus in pediatric patients. The authors investigate the utility of a modified trauma-focused fbMRI (t-fbMRI) protocol as an alternative to surveillance CT in the setting of acute TBI in pediatric patients, thus reducing radiation exposure while improving diagnostic yield.

Methods: A retrospective review was performed at the authors' institution for all pediatric patients who had undergone t-fbMRI within 72 hours of an initial CT scan, using a 1.5- or 3-T MR scanner for trauma indications. Forty patients met the study inclusion criteria. The authors performed a comparison of findings on the reads of CT and fbMRI, and a board-certified neuroradiologist conducted an independent review of both modalities.

Results: T-fbMRI outperformed CT in specificity, sensitivity, and negative predictive value for all injury pathologies measured, except for skull fractures. T-fbMRI demonstrated a sensitivity of 100% in the detection of extraaxial bleed, intraventricular hemorrhage, and subarachnoid hemorrhage and had a sensitivity of 78% or greater for epidural hematoma, subdural hematoma, and intraparenchymal hemorrhage. T-fbMRI yielded a specificity of 100% for all types of intracranial hemorrhages, with a corresponding negative predictive value that exceeded that for CT.

Conclusions: In pediatric populations, the t-fbMRI protocol provides a valid alternative to CT in the surveillance of TBI and intracranial hemorrhage. Although not as sensitive in the detection of isolated skull fractures, t-fbMRI can be used to monitor pathologies implicated in TBI patients while minimizing radiation exposure from traditional surveillance imaging.

Keywords: computed tomography; intracranial hemorrhage; magnetic resonance imaging; pediatric trauma; radiation; surveillance imaging; traumatic brain injury.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Brain Injuries, Traumatic / diagnostic imaging*
  • Child
  • Child, Preschool
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Infant
  • Infant, Newborn
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging / methods*
  • Male
  • Neuroimaging / methods*
  • Retrospective Studies