New Imaging Helpful In Child Brain Injury Cases

Two new types of MRI of the brain – Diffusion Weighted Imaging (DWI) and Consequent Apparent Diffusion Coefficient (ADC) have been used as predictors of outcome in adults, and a recent study (Galloway, NR 2008), shows that these tools have excellent predictive capability in regards to children with traumatic brain injury. The study found that ADC values in the peripheral white matter were significantly reduced in children with severe TBI with poor outcomes compared to those with severe TBI and good outcomes. They also found that the total brain ADC value alone had the greatest ability to predict outcome and correctly predicted outcome in 84% of cases. Thus, early identification of children in high risk for poor outcomes can be obtained using these tools and can assist in aggressive clinical management of these patients.