Table_1_Assessment of normal myelination in infants and young children using the T1w/T2w mapping technique.XLSX

BackgroundWhite matter myelination is a crucial process of CNS maturation. The purpose of this study was to validate the T1w/T2w mapping technique for brain myelination assessment in infants and young children.MethodsNinety-four patients (0–23 months of age) without structural abnormalities on brain MRI were evaluated by using the T1w/T2w mapping method. The T1w/T2w signal intensity ratio, which reflects white matter integrity and the degree of myelination, was calculated in various brain regions. We performed a Pearson correlation analysis, a LOESS regression analysis, and a 2nd order polynomial regression analysis to describe the relationships between the regional metrics and the age of the patients (in months).ResultsT1w/T2w ratio values rapidly increased in the first 6–9 months of life and then slowed thereafter. The T1w/T2w mapping technique emphasized the contrast between myelinated and less myelinated structures in all age groups, which resulted in better visualization. There were strong positive correlations between the T1w/T2w ratio values from the majority of white matter ROIs and the subjects’ age (R = 0.7–0.9, p < 0.001). Within all of the analyzed regions, there were non-linear relationships between age and T1/T2 ratio values that varied by anatomical and functional location. Regions such as the splenium and the genu of the corpus callosum showed the highest R2 values, thus indicating less scattering of data and a better fit to the model.ConclusionThe T1w/T2w mapping technique may enhance our diagnostic ability to assess myelination patterns in the brains of infants and young children.

背景：中枢神经系统（CNS）的髓鞘形成是成熟过程中的关键步骤。本研究旨在验证T1w/T2w映射技术在婴幼儿大脑髓鞘评估中的应用。方法：对94例（年龄0-23个月）大脑MRI检查无结构异常的患者进行了T1w/T2w映射方法评估。计算了不同脑区的T1w/T2w信号强度比，该比值反映白质完整性和髓鞘化的程度。通过皮尔逊相关分析、LOESS回归分析和二次多项式回归分析，描述了区域指标与患者年龄（以月为单位）之间的关系。结果：T1w/T2w比值在出生后的前6-9个月迅速增加，之后增长速度放缓。T1w/T2w映射技术在所有年龄段均突出了髓鞘化和少髓鞘化结构之间的对比，从而提高了可视性。大多数白质区域（ROI）的T1w/T2w比值与受试者年龄之间存在强烈的正相关（R = 0.7-0.9，p < 0.001）。在所有分析区域中，年龄与T1/T2比值之间存在非线性关系，这种关系因解剖和功能位置而异。例如，脑室管膜和胼胝体膝部区域的R2值最高，表明数据分散度较低，与模型拟合度较好。结论：T1w/T2w映射技术可能提高我们对婴幼儿大脑髓鞘模式评估的诊断能力。