Prevalence of Contrast Enhancement of the Oculomotor Nerve on 3D PD T1 MRI Sequence in Patients With Ophthalmoplegia
Prevalence of Contrast Enhancement of the Oculomotor Nerve on 3D PD T1 MRI Sequence in Patients With Ophthalmoplegia
Oculomotor nerve (third cranial nerve or "III") palsy is a relatively frequent cause of consultation in ophthalmology.
It may reveal a life-threatening pathology such as aneurysm rupture, pituitary apoplexy, and therefore need imaging in emergency. Apart from few extreme emergency situations, MRI of the oculomotor tract is the first-line examination required. In our usual clinical practice, we noticed in several patients unusual contrast enhancement within the oculomotor nerve on T1 sequence with gadolinium injection, observed in various locations along the nerve path (cavernous and/ or intra-orbital segment).
This contrast enhancement, could confirm the nerve impairment This study aims to analyse the efficiency of a new sequence 3D PD T1 which isotropic spatial resolution less than 1mm, not yet described in the literature, to depict this enhancement.
In patients with ophthalmoplegia involving probably the third cranial nerve, disclosing this MRI sign could help (i) to confirm the involvement of the oculomotor nerve and eliminate differential diagnoses such as myasthenia (ii) to orientate the etiological diagnosis (inflammatory or ischemic origin). This new sequence 3D PD T1 sequence focused on the III could thus be systematically included in the usual MRI protocol.
Inclusion Criteria:
- Ophthalmoplegia whatever the clinical form (unilateral or not, isolated or not, sudden or progressive onset)
Exclusion Criteria:
-Absolute contraindication to MRI or injection of contrast agents.