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Hypertension (HTN) might impair cognition. Brain iron deposition correlates with cognitive impairment. The relationship between brain iron and cognition in HTN patients is less clear.To measure brain susceptibility in HTN patients using quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) and to explore the relationship between brain iron and cognition.Retrospective cross-sectional study.Sixty HTN patients (35 with mild cognitive impairment [MCI] and 25 without MCI) and 24 age, gender, and education matched controls.3 T; strategically acquired gradient echo (STAGE) imaging protocol for QSM analysis.All subjects underwent Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) scoring of visuospatial/executive, naming, attention, abstraction, language, delayed memory, and orientation functions. HTN patients were divided into two groups (with and without MCI) depending on the MoCA score. Regions of interest (ROIs) were manually demarcated on the STAGE images by three independent radiologists and susceptibility were determined for bilateral frontal white matter, parietal white matter, occipital white matter, caudate nucleus (CN), putamen (PU), globus pallidus (GP), thalamus (TH), red nucleus (RN), substantia nigra (SN), and dentate nucleus (DN).Analysis of variance with post-hoc least significant difference (LSD) tests and Pearson correlation coefficients (r). A P-value0.05 was considered to be statistically significant.The susceptibility was significantly different in CN, PU, and DN among the three groups. The susceptibility of right CN and left PU were correlated with MoCA scores (r = -0.429 and r = -0.389, respectively). The susceptibility of left PU was also correlated with delayed memory scores (r = -0.664). The susceptibility of left and right GP were correlated with naming scores (r = -0.494 and r = -0.446, respectively) and the susceptibility of left DN were correlated with visuospatial/executive scores (r = 0.479).QSM measured brain iron was significantly higher in CN, PU, and DN in HTN patients. Cognitive impairment was correlated with regional brain iron deposition.2 TECHNICAL EFFICACY: Stage 3.

BACKGROUND: We aimed to compare the performance of three contrast-enhanced T1-weighted three-dimensional (3D) magnetic resonance (MR) sequences to detect brain tumors at 3 Tesla. The three sequences were: (I) delay alternating with nutation for tailored excitation sampling perfection with application-optimized contrasts using different flip angle evolution (DANTE-SPACE), (II) pointwise encoding time reduction with radial acquisition (PETRA), and (III) magnetization-prepared rapid acquisition with gradient echo (MPRAGE). METHODS: This study involved 77 consecutive patients, including 34 patients with known primary brain tumors and 43 patients suspected of intracranial metastases. All patients underwent each of the three sequences with comparable spatial resolution and acquisition time post-injection. Signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) for gray matter (GM) and white matter (WM), contrast-to-noise ratios (CNRs) for lesion/GM, lesion/WM, and GM/WM were quantitatively compared. Two radiologists determined the total number of enhancing lesions by consensus. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) between the two radiologists for metastases presence, qualitative ratings for image quality, and acoustic noise level of each sequence were assessed. RESULTS: Among the three sequences, SNRs and CNRs between lesions and surrounding parenchyma were highest using DANTE-SPACE, but CNR(WM/GM) was the lowest with DANTE-SPACE. SNRs for PETRA images were significantly higher than those for MPRAGE (P0.05). Significantly more brain metastases were detected with DANTE-SPACE (n=94) compared with MPRAGE (n=71) and PETRA (n=72). The ICCs were 0.964 for MPRAGE, 0.975 for PETRA, and 0.973 for DANTE-SPACE. Qualitative scores for lesion imaging using DANTE-SPACE were significantly higher than those obtained with PETRA and MPRAGE (P=0.002 and P=0.004, respectively). The acoustic noise level for PETRA (64.45 dB) was significantly lower than that for MPRAGE (78.27 dB, P

OBJECTIVE The complex anatomical structures of cerebellopontine angle (CPA) pose a unique challenge to diffusion weighted imaging (DWI). This study aimed to compare the clinical utility of the prototypic 2D turbo gradient- and spin echo-BLADE-DWI (TGSE-BLADE-DWI) with that of readout-segmented echo-planar DWI (RESOLVE-DWI) and single-shot echo-planar DWI (SS-EPI-DWI) to visualize CPA anatomic structures and identify CPA tumors. METHODS A total of 8 volunteers and 36 patients with pathological CPA tumors were enrolled to perform the three DWI sequences at 3 T. Scan time of TGSE-BLADE-DWI, RESOLVE-DWI and SS-EPI-DWI was 5 min 51 s, 5 min 15 s and 1 min 22 s, respectively. Subjective analysis, including visualization of anatomical structures, geometric distortion, ghosting artifacts, lesion conspicuity, diagnostic confidence, and overall image quality of the three DWI sequences were scored and assessed. Signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) of CPA tumors were measured and compared. RESULTS A total of 39 lesions were identified, TGSE-BLADE-DWI detected all of them, RESOLVE-DWI 36 and SS-EPI-DWI 27. Significant differences were found in all the subjective parameters among the three DWI sequences (all p

Purpose: To investigate feasibility and diagnostic performance of turbo gradient and spin-echo BLADE (proprietary name for Periodically Rotated Overlapping ParallEL Lines with Enhanced Reconstruction [PROPELLER] in Siemens MR systems)-diffusion weighted imaging (TGSE-BLADE-DWI) for depicting extraocular muscle (EOM) involvement and activity in thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy (TAO), and to compare TGSE-BLADE-DWI with readout-segmented echo-planar imaging (RESOLVE). Materials and methods: Thirty-five patients with identified TAO underwent the two DWI scans. Two radiologists visually scored the image quality of the two DWIs with respect to the susceptibility artifacts and geometric distortions on a three-point scale. The maximum size (Sizemax) of EOMs and corresponding ADCs (cADCs) of each patient were compared between the active and inactive phases. The clinical activity score (CAS) was used as a reference to assess the diagnostic performance of EOM ADCs for grading TAO activity. ROC analysis, Pearson correlation, and Wilcoxon signed-rank test were used for statistical analyses. Results: For scores of EOMs, the image quality of TGSE-BLADE-DWI was significantly higher than that of RESOLVE. There were no statistically significant differences between the AUCs of the two DWIs, Sizemax, or cADCs between the active and inactive phases. TGSE-BLADE-DWI ADCs were significantly higher than the RESOLVE ADCs in the right superior rectus, right lateral rectus, left superior rectus, and left inferior rectus. There were no statistically significant correlations between the cADC or Sizemax, and CAS. The highest AUC was 0.697 for RESOLVE and 0.657 for TGSE-BLADE-DWI. The best performing ADC threshold was 1.85 × 10−3 mm2/s with 85.7% sensitivity, 58.8% specificity and 66.67% accuracy for RESOLVE and 1.99 × 10−3 mm2/s with 79.0% sensitivity, and 55.6% specificity and 65.27% accuracy for TGSE-BLADE-DWI. Conclusion: Compared to RESOLVE, TGSE-BLADE-DWI provided improved image quality with fewer susceptibility artifacts and geometric distortions for EOM visualization and showed an equivalent performance in detecting active TAO.

Objective. We aimed to evaluate the advantages of preoperative digital design of skin flaps to repair fingertip defects during the COVID-19 pandemic. We combined digital design with a 3D-printed model of the affected finger for preoperative communication with fingertip defect patients under observation in a buffer ward. Methods. From December 2019 to January 2021, we obtained data from 25 cases of 30 fingertip defects in 15 males and 10 females, aged 20-65 years old (mean 35 ± 5 years). All cases were treated by digitally designing preoperative fingertip defect flaps combined with a 3D-printed model. Preoperative 3D Systems Sense scanning was routinely performed, 3-matic 12.0 was used to measure the fingertip defect area ranging from 1.5 cm × 3.5 cm to 2.0 cm × 5.0 cm , and the skin flap was designed. The flap area was 1.6 cm × 3.6 cm to 2.1 cm × 5.1 cm . CURA 15.02.1 was used to set parameters, and the 3D model of the affected finger was printed prior to the operation. Full-thickness skin grafts were taken from donor areas for repair. Results. No vascular crises occurred in any of the 25 cases, and all flaps survived. The postoperative follow-up occurred over 3-12 months. All patients were evaluated 3 months after operation according to the trial standard of hand function evaluation of the Chinese Hand Surgery Society. The results showed that 20 cases had excellent outcomes (80%), four cases had good outcomes (16%), and one case had a fair outcome (4%). The excellent and good rate was 96%. Conclusions. During the COVID-19 epidemic, fingertip defects were treated with preoperative digital design of fingertip defect flaps combined with 3D printing. Precision design saves surgery time and improves the success rate of surgery and the survival rates of skin flaps. In addition, 3D model simulations improve preoperative communication efficiency, and the personalized design improves patient satisfaction.

To investigate the clinical utility of pointwise encoding time reduction with radial acquisition in subtraction-based magnetic resonance angiography (PETRA-MRA) and time-of-flight magnetic resonance angiography (TOF-MRA) to evaluate saccular unruptured intracranial aneurysms (UIAs). A total of 49 patients with 54 TOF-MRA–identified saccular UIAs were enrolled. The morphologic parameters, contrast-to-noise-ratios (CNRs), and sharpness of aneurysms were measured using PETRA-MRA and TOF-MRA. Two radiologists independently evaluated subjective image scores, focusing on aneurysm signal homogeneities and sharpness depictions using a 4-point scale: 4, excellent; 3, good; 2, poor; 1, not assessable. PETRA-MRA and TOF-MRA acoustic noises were measured. All aneurysms were detected with PETRA-MRA. The morphologic parameters of 15 patients evaluated with PETRA-MRA were more closely correlated with those receiving computed tomography angiography over those receiving TOF-MRA. No significant differences between PETRA-MRA and TOF-MRA parameters were seen in the 54 UIAs (p > 0.10), excluding those with inflow angles (p

MR pulmonary angiography (MRPA) combined with indirect MR venography (MRV) was attempted by using 3D contrast-enhanced MR volume interpolated body examination (VIBE) sequence. Agreement rate for deep venous thrombosis (DVT) detection between MRV and duplex sonography (DUS) was evaluated; the potential of this method for venous thromoembolism (VTE) was also investigated. Thirty-four patients with DUS-identified DVT were enrolled in this study. MRI was performed after a single administration of Gadopentetate dimeglumine. Fat-suppressed 3D VIBE was applied for visualizing pulmonary arteries, abdominal veins, pelvic and leg veins, ranging from lung apex to ankle level. Two radiologists observed the MR images in consensus, recorded the location and number of emboli. MRV images were assessed based on per-vein segment. The agreement rate between MRV and DUS for venous segment-to-segment comparison was analyzed by Wilcoxon rank sum test. All the patients were diagnosed as having DVT by MRV. MRV detected 55 more venous segments with thrombi than DUS based on per-vein segment analysis. Twenty-three patients with pulmonary embolism (PE) were detected by MRPA. Twenty-one patients underwent both pulmonary CT angiography and MRPA, and consistency for PE detection was 100%. Total examination time of the combined MR protocol was 7 min for each patient. The contrast-enhanced VIBE sequence proves to be a feasible and reliable method for VTE diagnosis in one-stop MR scanning procedure, and contrast-enhanced VIBE performs better to depict DVT than DUS on per-vein segment basis.

Imaging appearances of peripheral nerve sheath tumors by MRI are difficult distinguish from soft-tissue tumors. The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and imaging appearance of high-resolution 3-T magnetic resonance neurography (MRN) of the diagnosis of peripheral nerve sheath tumors (PNSTs) using sampling perfection with application-optimized contrasts using different flip angle evolution (SPACE) sequences. We retrospectively evaluated the MRI and 3D Short tau inversion recovery sampling perfection with application-optimized contrasts using varying flip-angle evolutions (3D-STIR SPACE) sequences of 30 patients with PNSTs diagnosed by surgery and pathology. The contrast-enhanced 3D-STIR SPACE images were retrospectively analyzed and evaluated for the visualization of PNSTs. The tumors were evaluated by their number, location, morphology, size, signal intensity and enhancement characteristics. The imaging findings and characteristic signs of conventional MRI scanning and contrast-enhanced 3D-STIR SPACE sequences were compared. In these cases, conventional MRI images display the location, number, shape, size and signal characteristics of the lesions. These tumors were mostly solitary and had a well-defined boundary. Compared to conventional MRI images, imaging appearances including neurogenic origin, length of the peripheral nerves and relation to the nerve of PNSTs on 3D-STIR SPACE images were more accuracy (P

This study aims to provide normal reference values for quantitative parameters for brachial and lumbosacral plexi on multimodal MRI. In addition, the parameter variations between the left and right sides, the individual nerve groups, genders and age groups were also evaluated.Multimodal MRI was evaluated in 163 healthy subjects, who were randomly divided into three groups: brachial plexus, lumbosacral plexus and diffusion tensor imaging groups. Nerve diameters, contrast ratios, T2 nerve-muscle signal ratios (nT2), fractional anisotropy (FA) values and apparent diffusion coefficients (ADC) were measured in both plexi. Parametric tests and Pearson correlation for normally distributed data, and non-parametric tests and Spearman correlation for non-normally distributed data were used.There were no significant differences in parameters between the left and right sides. The diameters of the C7, L4-S1, sciatic, and femoral nerve roots were larger in men than in women (P 0.05). The nT2 in the brachial and lumbosacral plexi and the contrast ratio in the lumbosacral plexus were significantly higher in the elderly. The diameter of the S1 nerve root was smaller in the elderly. There were no significant differences between the individual nerve groups in contrast ratios and in brachial plexus nT2. A gradual increase in the nT2 from the top to the bottom was observed in the L4-S1 nerve roots (P 0.05).This study provides multi-parameter normative data for the brachial and lumbosacral plexi while considering differences between the two sides, the individual nerves, genders, and the ages.

Summary Background With ongoing technical developments, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has notably evolved for the assessment of the pulmonary vasculature. However, uncertainty persists about the performance of MRI for the diagnosis of acute pulmonary embolism (APE). Objectives To clarify the comprehensive role of MRI in diagnosing APE. Methods Studies were identified through a search of Pubmed and Ovid databases, and the QUADAS-2 tool was applied for quality assessment of the included studies. Results Fifteen studies based on patients and nine based on vessels were retrieved. The patient-based analysis yielded an overall sensitivity of 0.75 (95% confidence interval, 0.70–0.79) and 0.84 (0.80–0.87) for all patients and patients with technically adequate images, respectively, with an overall specificity of 0.80 (0.77–0.83) and 0.97 (0.96–0.98) and a pooled diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) of 51.07 (18.36–142.05) and 155.22 (86.83–277.47). On average, MRI was technically inadequate in 18.89% of patients (range, 2.10%–27.70%). A direct comparison of different MRI modalities showed that the combined MRI test had the highest pooled DOR and the lowest proportion of inconclusive images. Of note, heterogeneity and moderate quality were observed. On a vessel basis, the MRI had high sensitivity and specificity in larger-order vessels, but a significantly lower sensitivity of 0.55 (0.50–0.60) for subsegmental APE. Conclusions On a patient-based level, MRI yields high diagnostic accuracy for the detection of APE, especially in technically adequate images, and the inconclusive MRI examinations mainly result from motion artifact and poor arterial opacification. The combined MRI test appears to be a more promising diagnostic tool with greater power of discrimination than single techniques. From a vessel-based perspective, MRI exhibits a high diagnostic capability with proximal arteries, but lacks sensitivity for peripheral embolism.

This study described the radiological features on echocardiography and MRI specific to cardiac amyloidosis confirmed on biopsy. Eleven cases of biopsy-proven cardiac amyloidosis were retrospectively reviewed in this study. All patients underwent biopsy, cardiac MRI and echocardiography. The main echocardiography and MRI findings were as follows: diffuse ventricular and septum wall thickening, atrial enlargement, pericardial effusion, restricted left ventricular (LV) systolic and diastolic function, characteristic granular sparkling of myocardium. MRI revealed a characteristic pattern of global subendocardial late enhancement, extending in varying degrees into the neighboring myocardium. The findings agreed with the infiltration distribution of amyloid protein. Typical abnormalities seen on echocardiography and MRI should have important diagnostic and prognostic value of cardiac amyloidosis. MRI should be considered in the diagnosis of cardiac amyloidosis if echocardiographic features are suspicious.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the potential of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in quantitatively monitoring chronic constriction injuri (CCI) of sciatic nerves and to analyse the association of DTI parameters with nerve histology and limb function. METHODS: CCI was created on sciatic nerves in the right hind legs of 20 rabbits with the left as control. DTI parameters—fractional anisotropy (FA), apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), axial diffusivity (AD) and radial diffusivity (RD)—and limb function were longitudinally evaluated. Pathology analysis was performed on day 3 (d3), week 1 (w1), 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10. RESULTS: FA of the constricted nerves decreased on d3 (0.316 ± 0.044) and increased from w1 to w10 (0.331 ± 0.018, 0.354 ± 0.044, 0.375 ± 0.015, 0.394 ± 0.020, 0.42 ± 0.03 and 0.464 ± 0.039). ADC increased on d3 until w2 (1.502 ± 0.126, 1.462 ± 0.058 and 1.473 ± 0.124 × 10(−3) mm(2) s(−1)) and decreased to normal from w4 to w10 (1.356 ± 0.129, 1.375 ± 0.107, 1.290 ± 0.064 and 1.298 ± 0.026 × 10(−3) mm(2) s(−1)). AD decreased and stayed low from d3 to w10 (2.042 ± 0.160, 2.005 ± 0.095, 2.057 ± 0.124, 1.952 ± 0.213, 1.988 ± 0.180, 1.947 ± 0.106 and 2.097 ± 0.114). RD increased on d3 (1.233 ± 0.152) and declined from w1 to w10 (1.19 ± 0.06, 1.181 ± 0.14, 1.071 ± 0.102, 1.068 ± 0.084, 0.961 ± 0.063 and 0.923 ± 0.058). FA, ADC and RD correlated significantly with limb functional scores (all Ps < 0.0001) and their changes were associated with histological changes. CONCLUSION: FA, ADC and RD are promising to monitor CCI. AD may be a stable indicator for injury. Histological changes, oedema, axon loss and demyelination, and fibrosis, accompanied the changes of these parameters. ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE: DTI parameters can detect and monitor acute and chronic changes after nerve compression.

This study examined the effect of different b values on diffusion-weighted MR imaging (DWI) of human prostate by using single-shot spin echo echo planar imaging (SE-EPI) sequences, observed the normal appearances and measured apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values in anatomical regions of normal prostate. Twenty-four healthy volunteers (mean age: 32 y) were studied by using a 1.5T system with a phased array surface multicoil. Two kinds of single-shot SE-EPI sequence were used to perform DWI in the prostate in volunteers, with five b values being 0, 30, 300, 500 to 1000 s/mm(2). The image quality with different imaging parameters was analyzed and the ADC values in anatomical regions of normal prostate were measured. DWI of prostate was successfully obtained in all volunteers. The images were of good quality, without artifacts containing pixels within the prostate. The contrast was good between the different anatomical regions of the prostatic gland, i.e., the peripheral zone (PZ), which exhibited higher signal intensity, and the central gland (CG). Signal intensity contrast was related to the magnitude of b values. The ADC values in PZ and CG were (1.27+/-0.22)x10(-3) mm(2)/s and (1.01+/-0.17)x10(-3) mm(2)/s, respectively. The ADC values were found to be significantly higher in PZ than in CG (P0.05, paired t-test). Significant differences were found between the slice-selecting component and both the read-out and phase-encoding components of the ADC values. It is concluded that SE-EPI is a suitable DWI sequence for human prostate. The contrast between PZ and CG is good when b values are low, while the diffusion and ADC values are accurate when b values are high. ADC values are higher in PZ than in CG in normal prostate. Diffusional anisotropy is present in normal prostatic tissue.

To study, through blood oxygen level dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging (BOLD fMRI), the cerebral activated areas evoked by electro-acupuncturing (EA) the right Hegu point (LI4) or non-acupoint points on the face, and through comparing their similarities and differences, to speculate on the specific cerebral areas activated by stimulating LI4, for exploring the mechanism of its effect in potential clinical application. EA was applied at volunteers’ right LI4 (of 9 subjects in the LI4 group) and facial non-acupoint points (of 5 subjects in the control group), and whole brain 3-dimensional T1 anatomical imaging of high resolution 1 × 1 × 1 mm3 used was performed with clustered stimulatory mode adopted by BOLD fMRI. Pretreatment and statistical t-test were conducted on the data by SPM2 software, then the statistical parameters were superimposed to the 3-dimensional anatomical imaging. Data from 3 testees of the 9 subjects in the LI4 group were given up eventually because they were unfit to the demand due to different causes such as movement of patients’ location or machinery factors. Statistical analysis showed that signal activation or deactivation was found in multiple cerebral areas in 6 subjects of LI4 group and 5 subjects of the control group (P

This study aimed to determine the diagnostic accuracy of computed tomography imaging for the diagnosis of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH). Additionally, the effect of test and study characteristics was explored. Studies published between 1990 and 2015 identified by PubMed, OVID search and citation tracking were examined. Of the 613 citations, 11 articles (n=712) met the inclusion criteria. The patient-based analysis demonstrated a pooled sensitivity of 76% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 69% to 82%), and a pooled specificity of 96% (95%CI: 93% to 98%). This resulted in a pooled diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) of 191 (95%CI: 75 to 486). The vessel-based analyses were divided into 3 levels: total arteries、main+ lobar arteries and segmental arteries. The pooled sensitivity were 88% (95%CI: 87% to 90%)、95% (95%CI: 92% to 97%) and 88% (95%CI: 87% to 90%), respectively, with a pooled specificity of 90% (95%CI: 88% to 91%)、96% (95%CI: 94% to 97%) and 89% (95% CI: 87% to 91%). This resulted in a pooled diagnostic odds ratio of 76 (95%CI: 23 to 254),751 (95%CI: 57 to 9905) and 189 (95%CI: 21 to 1072), respectively. In conclusion, CT is a favorable method to rule in CTEPH and to rule out pulmonary endarterectomy (PEA) patients for proximal branches. Furthermore, dual-energy and 320-slices CT can increase the sensitivity for subsegmental arterials, which are promising imaging techniques for balloon pulmonary angioplasty (BPA) approach. In the near future, CT could position itself as the key for screening consideration and for surgical and interventional operability.

In order to evaluate the diagnostic value of three-dimensional contrast-enhanced MR angiography and MRI for pulmonary sequestration, 5 patients with pulmonary sequestration underwent 3D fast imaging by steady state precession (FISP) with a contrast medium and breath holding following chest radiography, CT and MR scans. The reconstructed MR angiography was performed using maximum intensity projection (MIP) and multiplanar reconstruction (MPR) techniques. It was found that the chest radiography showed pulmonary sequestration as a persistent area of opacity in the posterior basal segment of the left lower lobe, which was close to mediastinum in 2 cases and close to diaphragma in 3 cases. CT revealed a soft issue mass beyond descending aorta and lobar emphysema around the pulmonary sequestration. And the supplying vessel was documented in 2 cases on enhanced CT. MRI demonstrated a hyperintensity mass with respect to normal lung parenchyma on T1WI and T2WI, and the origin of the supplying vessel in 3 cases. The reconstructed CE MRA using MIP or MRP techniques clearly showed the supplying vessel and its course, branches as well as draining vessels. It was concluded that 3D CE MRA of demonstrating the supplying and draining vessels to pulmonary sequestration, together with plain MRI, can provide a diagnosis and aid in surgical planning without the need for DSA.

To evaluate MRI in esophageal carcinoma and its resectability. MR imaging (sagittal, coronal, axial) were performed in 30 cases (male 24 cases, female 6 cases, average age 58 years) and retrospectively analyzed. Results showed that MRI clearly demonstrated the location, actual length, and extent of esophageal carcinoma as well as its relation with surrounding structures in all cases. Metastasis to other organs was found in 7 cases. The conclusion indicated that MR imaging played an important role in preoperative diagnosis of esophageal carcinoma, providing valuable information in determining resectability of the tumor.

To reveal the relationship of brain motion and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) flow by phase-contrast cine MRI, and to evaluate this technique in differentiating between arachnoid cysts and subarachnoid space enlargement.Using a phase-contrast cine MRI pulse sequence, we measured brain motion and CSF flow during the cardiac cycle in 10 healthy volunteers and 10 patients with MRI-suspected arachnoid cyst or subarachnoid space enlargement. CSF stroke volume curve was illustrated according to flow quantification, and time-signal intensity curve was traced. The two curves were compared.This study showed that brain motion was due to the volume difference between arterial and venous blood flow during a cardiac cycle, and thus drives CSF pulsation. Arachnoid cysts and subarachnoid space enlargement carried different curve patterns, demonstrating that phase-contrast MRI and flow quantification can be a useful and reliable technique for non-invasive evaluation of brain motion and CSF flow.Arachnoid cysts can be successfully differentiated using phase-contrast cine MRI from subarachnoid space enlargement.