Volume quantification of gray-matter nuclei iron in closed head trauma patients based on follow-up with long TR-long TE MR imaging at 1.5 T

This paper reports on the volume of basal ganglionic brain iron in patients suffering severe closed head trauma, to determine if it differs from that in age- matched normal controls, and to define any correlation with clinical status. Twenty patients with prior closed head trauma underwent contiguous-section spin-echo MR imaging at 1.5T (TR, 3,000 msec; TE, 30 and 80 msec). Volume calculations were performed with a previously verified segmentation program based on semiautomatic partitioning of bifeature space. Volumes of hypointensity in sites of known normal iron accumulation were calculated and compared with those from an age-matched control population of volunteers. These results were also correlated with disability score (Philadelphia Brain Impairment Scale), age, and time interval from the injury