Magnetic Resonance Post-contrast Vascular Hyperintensities at 3 T: a Sensitive Sign of Vascular Occlusion in Acute Ischaemic Stroke

Magnetic Resonance Post-contrast Vascular Hyperintensities at 3 T: a New Highly Sensitive Sign of Vascular Occlusion in Acute Ischaemic Stroke

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the diagnostic cornerstone for precisely identifying acute ischaemic strokes and locating vascular occlusions.

It was observed that a post-contrast three-dimensional turbo-spin-echo T1weighted sequence showed striking post-contrast vascular hyperintensities (PCVH) in ischaemic territories. The aim is to evaluate the prevalence and the meaning of this finding.

This study included 130 consecutive patients admitted for acute ischaemic stroke with a 3-T MRI performed in the first 12 h of symptom onset from September 2014 through September 2016. Two neuroradiologists blinded to clinical data analysed the first MRI assessments.

Inclusion criteria:

• Patients aged 18 and older at onset of an acute ischaemic stroke
• Availability of at least one pre-therapeutic MRI performed in our centre within 12 h of stroke onset, including a post-contrast 3D TSE T1-weighted sequence.

Exclusion criteria:

• Patients with posterior fossa strokes
• Patients with known intracranial vasculitis or MoyaMoya disease
• Presence of severe MR imaging artefacts preventing correct interpretation