Skip to main content
PMC home page
Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry logoLink to Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry
. 1996 Sep;61(3):314–317. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.61.3.314

Brain and spinal cord MRI in motor neuron disease.

J W Thorpe 1, I F Moseley 1, C H Hawkes 1, D G MacManus 1, W I McDonald 1, D H Miller 1
PMCID: PMC486559  PMID: 8795607

Abstract

Motor neuron disease causes widespread degeneration of motor neurons within both the brain and spinal cord. Brain and spinal cord MRI were performed in 11 patients with motor neuron disease, and in 17 controls. Symmetric areas of high signal within the corticospinal tracts were found in nine patients on T2 weighted spin echo (SE) or fast spin echo (FSE) images of the brain and in eight on T2 or T2* weighed images of the spinal cord. High signal within the posterior limbs of the internal capsules was also found in four controls; this finding in isolation is therefore not pathological. No controls had abnormalities within the spinal cord. Low signal within the motor cortex was found in 10 patients, but was also seen in six controls. Thus MRI often displays characteristic abnormalities within the corticospinal tracts in patients with motor neuron disease, and should be considered in the investigation of suspected cases.

Full text

PDF

Images in this article

315Image
on p.315
315Image
on p.315
316Image
on p.316
316Image
on p.316

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Abe K., Fujimura H., Toyooka K., Hazama T., Hirono N., Yorifuji S., Yanagihara T. Single-photon emission computed tomographic investigation of patients with motor neuron disease. Neurology. 1993 Aug;43(8):1569–1573. doi: 10.1212/wnl.43.8.1569. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Brownell B., Oppenheimer D. R., Hughes J. T. The central nervous system in motor neurone disease. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 1970 Jun;33(3):338–357. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.33.3.338. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Friedman D. P., Tartaglino L. M. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: hyperintensity of the corticospinal tracts on MR images of the spinal cord. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 1993 Mar;160(3):604–606. doi: 10.2214/ajr.160.3.8430564. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Goodin D. S., Rowley H. A., Olney R. K. Magnetic resonance imaging in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Ann Neurol. 1988 Apr;23(4):418–420. doi: 10.1002/ana.410230424. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Hajnal J. V., De Coene B., Lewis P. D., Baudouin C. J., Cowan F. M., Pennock J. M., Young I. R., Bydder G. M. High signal regions in normal white matter shown by heavily T2-weighted CSF nulled IR sequences. J Comput Assist Tomogr. 1992 Jul-Aug;16(4):506–513. doi: 10.1097/00004728-199207000-00002. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Ishikawa K., Nagura H., Yokota T., Yamanouchi H. Signal loss in the motor cortex on magnetic resonance images in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Ann Neurol. 1993 Feb;33(2):218–222. doi: 10.1002/ana.410330214. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Iwasaki Y., Ikeda K., Kinoshita M. MRI lesions in motor neuron disease. J Neurol. 1992 Feb;239(2):112–113. doi: 10.1007/BF00862986. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. LAWYER T., Jr, NETSKY M. G. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. AMA Arch Neurol Psychiatry. 1953 Feb;69(2):171–192. doi: 10.1001/archneurpsyc.1953.02320260029002. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Luís M. L., Hormigo A., Maurício C., Alves M. M., Serrão R. Magnetic resonance imaging in motor neuron disease. J Neurol. 1990 Dec;237(8):471–474. doi: 10.1007/BF00314764. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Martí-Fàbregas J., Pujol J. Selective involvement of the pyramidal tract on magnetic resonance imaging in primary lateral sclerosis. Neurology. 1990 Nov;40(11):1799–1800. doi: 10.1212/wnl.40.11.1799. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Mirowitz S., Sartor K., Gado M., Torack R. Focal signal-intensity variations in the posterior internal capsule: normal MR findings and distinction from pathologic findings. Radiology. 1989 Aug;172(2):535–539. doi: 10.1148/radiology.172.2.2748836. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Oberwittler C., Masur H., Ludolph A. C., Fahrendorf G. MRI in ALS. Neurology. 1992 Aug;42(8):1641–1641. doi: 10.1212/wnl.42.8.1641. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Pringle C. E., Hudson A. J., Munoz D. G., Kiernan J. A., Brown W. F., Ebers G. C. Primary lateral sclerosis. Clinical features, neuropathology and diagnostic criteria. Brain. 1992 Apr;115(Pt 2):495–520. doi: 10.1093/brain/115.2.495. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES