Increased prevalence of brain tumors classified as T2 hyperintensities in neurofibromatosis 1
Abstract
We sought to define the radiologic features that differentiate neoplastic from non-neoplastic T2 hyperintensities (T2Hs) in neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) and identify those lesions most likely to require oncologic surveillance. We conducted a single-center retrospective review of all available brain MRIs from 68 children with NF1 (n = 190) and 46 healthy pediatric controls (n = 104). All T2Hs identified on MRI were characterized based on location, border, shape, degree of T1 hypointensity, and presence of mass effect or contrast enhancement, and subsequently classified using newly established radiologic criteria as either unidentified bright objects (UBOs) or probable tumors. Lesion classification was pathologically confirmed in 10 NF1 cases. T2Hs were a highly sensitive (94.4%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 86.4%-98.5%) and specific (100.0%; 95% CI 92.3%-100.0%) marker for the diagnosis of NF1. UBOs constituted the majority of T2Hs (82%) and were most frequently located in cerebellar white matter, medial temporal lobe, and thalamus, where they were more likely than probable tumors to be bilateral (p < 0.001) and have nondiscrete borders (p < 0.001). Surprisingly, 57% of children with T2Hs harbored lesions classified as probabl...Continue Reading
References
Citations
Related Concepts
Related Feeds
Basal Ganglia
Basal Ganglia are a group of subcortical nuclei in the brain associated with control of voluntary motor movements, procedural and habit learning, emotion, and cognition. Here is the latest research.