Spectroscopie du phosphore 31 par résonance magnétique : applications en pathologies cérébrales

Summary Until recent years, brain applications of 31 P magnetic resonance spectroscopy were poor. Arising of clinical high field strength magnets (three Tesla) as well as dedicated brain coils (eg: bird cage), using specific and useful sequences providing appropriate spatial localisation and signal to noise ratio brought highlights on multinuclear spectroscopy. Better understanding of brain metabolism emphasizes the role of phosphoenergetic compounds and its potential issues in tumoral, metabolic and degenerative diseases. In the present paper, we report 1 year of experience and preliminary results for 40 patients as well as review of the literature. By successive in vivo determination and quantitation of numerous metabolites it allows, multinuclear spectroscopy may provide additional information to biomathematical models of brain metabolism.