Accuracy of Diagnosing Optic Neuritis Using DANTE T1-SPACE Imaging

Ayaka Shimada; Kenji Suda; Eri Nakano; Miho Tagawa; Manabu Miyata; Satoshi Kashii; Takuya Hinoda; Yasutaka Fushimi; Kimitoshi Kimura; Ryusei Nishigori; Sinyeob Ahn; John Grinstead; Akitaka Tsujikawa

doi:10.2147/EB.S474100

Accuracy of Diagnosing Optic Neuritis Using DANTE T1-SPACE Imaging

Eye Brain. 2024 Oct 29:16:65-73. doi: 10.2147/EB.S474100. eCollection 2024.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.
² Department of Ophthalmology, Shimane University Faculty of Medicine, Izumo, Shimane, Japan.
³ Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.
⁴ Department of Neurology, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.
⁵ MR Research and Development, Siemens Healthineers, San Francisco, CA, USA.
⁶ MR Research and Development, Siemens Healthineers, Portland, OR, USA.

Abstract

Purpose: To evaluate the use of delay alternating with nutation for tailored excitation-prepared T1-weighted turbo spin echo (DANTE T1-SPACE) imaging for diagnosing optic neuritis and to analyze its correlation with clinical findings before and after treatment.

Patients and methods: Patients diagnosed with optic neuritis or non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NA-AION) were evaluated at the Ophthalmology Department of Kyoto University Hospital. All patients underwent magnetic resonance (MR) studies before treatment initiation and ophthalmic examinations before and after treatment. Three ophthalmologists independently reviewed the MR scans for abnormalities. The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) assessments included post-contrast DANTE T1-SPACE, post-contrast volumetric interpolated breath-hold examination (VIBE), and short T1 inversion recovery (STIR) scans. The presence of abnormalities in each sequence was determined.

Results: Of 36 eyes from 30 patients, 21 eyes from 17 patients were diagnosed with optic neuritis, and 15 eyes from 13 patients were diagnosed with NA-AION. DANTE T1-SPACE sequences showed better sensitivity for detecting optic neuritis than STIR sequences (100% vs 67%, p = 0.009). VIBE images did not confirm enhancement of lesions in some cases with optic neuritis. No differences were observed among the sequences for NA-AION. Lesion length evaluated by DANTE T1-SPACE sequences was associated with circumpapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness at the initial visit, eye pain, and the time interval from symptom onset to MRI scan.

Conclusion: Contrast-enhanced DANTE T1-SPACE was better than other sequences of MRI for diagnosing optic neuritis.

Keywords: Optic neuritis; magnetic resonance imaging; retinal nerve fiber layer; visual field test.

Grants and funding

This research was supported in part by Grant-in-Aids for Scientific Research (no. 22K09812 [K.S.]) and a research grant from Alcon Japan, Ltd. The funding organization had no role in the design or conduct of this research.