The armamentarium of neuroimaging techniques includes: computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), ultrasound, x-ray, fluoroscopy, and nuclear medicine (NM). Of these, CT and MRI have found the most use in daily practice and are frequently used as first-line neuroimaging,…
Introduction Paget's disease, or osteitis deformans, is a chronic metabolic disorder characterized by increased bone turnover and breakdown secondary to excessive and disorganized osteoclastic and osteoblastic activity ( Fig. 48.1 ). The precise etiology is still unclear. The excessive breakdown…
Introduction Injection laryngoplasty is performed for treatment of vocal cord paralysis, which may have a variety of causes ( Box 46.1 ). Imaging during a Valsalva maneuver demonstrates the mechanical and physiologic barriers that patients with unilateral vocal cord paralysis…
Introduction Anomalies arising from the third and fourth branchial cleft remnants are quite rare. In particular, branchial abnormalities related to the pharynx are only a small subset of the already rare collection of branchial cleft lesions. Branchial abnormalities with a…
Introduction Deformities along the dorsal aspect of the thoracic spinal cord are occasionally identified on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), often in patients presenting with myelopathy ( Fig. 36.1 ). A variety of nontumoral etiologies result in deformities of the dorsal…
Introduction Hirayama disease is a rare, slowly progressive, and self-limiting cervical myelopathy related to neck flexion in young adults. It is characterized by a pure focal amyotrophy in the C7-T1 innervated musculature. It presents classically in an adolescent male with…
Introduction Spinal cord astrocytomas are quite uncommon and account for only 3% to 4% of all central nervous system (CNS) astrocytomas. Furthermore, although intracranial glioblastomas are the most common primary brain parenchymal neoplasm, spinal cord glioblastomas are exceedingly rare. The…
Introduction Subacute progressive ascending myelopathy (SPAM) is an exceedingly rare and poorly understood complication of spinal cord injury. As the natural history of this process is quite peculiar, it is especially important for the imaging interpreter to be aware of…
Introduction Chordomas are unusual tumors with seemingly unconventional traits. Most notably, they are malignant primary bone tumors but not sarcomas. They derive from embryologic cell remnants but predominantly affect late-middle-age adults, and they behave aggressively but grow slowly. Chordomas present…
Introduction The ultimate goal of lumbar interbody fusion procedures is to relieve debilitating pain or prevent neurologic compromise. Fusion is achieved via the promotion of solid ossification across a lumbar disk space, known as solid arthrodesis ( Fig. 24.1 ).…