Visualization of the Morphology and Pathology of the Peripheral Branches of the Cranial Nerves Using Three-dimensional High-resolution High-contrast Magnetic Resonance Neurography

Abstract Purpose To assess the feasibility and advantages of high-resolution high-contrast magnetic resonance neurography (HRHC-MRN) for visualizing the morphology and pathology of the peripheral branches of cranial nerves. Materials cMRN (3D SPACE STIR sequence) and HRHC-MRN (contrast enhanced 3D SPACE STIR sequence) were performed at 3 T MR unit on 16 volunteers and 12 patients with head and neck tumors. Quantitative measurements such as SNR, CNR and CR were calculated. Three readers evaluated the continuity of the 10 major peripheral branches of cranial nerves using a 5-score scale (scores 0–4). Interobserver variability was tested. Quantitative measurements and scores were compared between cMRN and HRHC-MRN. The imaging features of the nerve pathology were analyzed. Results The CRs of nerve to bone marrow, nerve to muscle, and nerve to gland were significantly higher with HRHC-MRN than with cMRN (P = 0.014, P = 0.02, P 0.8). The scores of the inferior alveolar nerve, hypoglossal nerve, lingual nerve, facial nerve, infraorbital nerve, masseteric nerve, glossopharyngeal/vagus nerve, supraorbital nerve, auriculotemporal nerve and buccal nerve were 3.95, 3.77, 3.63, 3.25, 3.15, 3.04, 3.04, 2.87, 2.79, 1.88, respectively. Conclusion HRHC-MRN provides improved visualization of the peripheral branches of cranial nerves and is a promising nerve-selective imaging method for evaluating cranial nerve morphology and pathology.