Using an intravenous injection of 100-150 ml contrast medium (flow, 1-1.5 ml/sec) adjacent 2-mm-thick cuts are scanned at the level of the circle of Willis. After highlighting and multilevel image summation a complete picture of the vascular anatomy of the base of the brain is obtained. In this way aneurysms as small as 2-3 mm in diameter can be detected. The method has high reliability, as indicated by the results in 31 cases.

Contrast Media↗

PubMedDate not supplied

CT diagnosis of basilar artery occlusion.

Basilar artery occlusion was diagnosed by high-resolution computed tomography (CT) in 11 cases. The normal basilar artery imaged on plain CT scans has an attenuation value not higher than that of whole blood. If the CT attenuation value of the vessel is higher than that of blood, basilar artery occlusion is probably present. The tentative diagnosis can be confirmed by comparison of the attenuation values on the pre- and postcontrast scans, preferably using multiple slices obtained by multiplane dynamic CT.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Reversible enlargement of cerebral spinal fluid spaces in chronic alcoholics.

Repeat computed tomography (CT) and clinical examinations, including psychologic tests, were performed in 15 chronic alcoholics. In nine controlled abstinent patients, marked decrease of cerebrospinal fluid space enlargement was visible on CT, corresponding with clinical improvement. A second CT examination after 1 year showed continued improvement in three successfully treated patients. The recovery of cortical and ventricular enlargements was encountered with equal frequency, although the more striking change was in the cortex. Possible underlying pathogenetic processes were considered.

Adult↗