High-Resolution MRI Insights Into Extra-Axial Intra-Calvarial Brain Lesions Without Trauma

Abstract

The paper aims to assess the usefulness of having a high-resolution Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) in pathologising and characterising extra-axial, intra-calvarial, non-traumatic lesions within the human brain. As a prospective observational study, conducted in a tertiary care centre, 88 patients with a history or suspicion of extra-axial lesions with a known or suspected age above 10 years were scanned using the 1.5T and 3T MRI systems. Imaging sequences included routine T1, T2, FLAIR, DWI, SWI, and contrast-enhanced sequences, with MR spectroscopy applied in a few cases. Arachnoid cysts, Schwannoma and Epidermoid cysts were the most frequent lesions detected. The lesions were mostly in the cerebellopontine angle, clivus and skull base. Clinical symptoms had good matches in MRI findings and enhanced the rate of accuracy in diagnosis. Pattern of signal intensity pattern in different sequences assisted in the distinction between benign and malignant lesions. The conclusion of the study was that high-resolution MRI is very successful in the non-invasive assessment and categorization of the extra-axial cerebral lesions providing crucial details with regard to early diagnosis and the best approach to treatment.