DIAGNOSTIC ACCURACY OF MAGNETIC RESONANCE PERFUSION IMAGING IN INTRACRANIAL BRAIN TUMOURS

Background: Intracranialtumours are a major global health burden, with high morbidity and mortality. While conventional MRI is the primary imaging tool, it has limitations in grading, treatment assessment, and distinguishing neoplastic from non-neoplastic lesions. Tumour vascularity is a key marker of malignancy, but conventional MRI reflects BBB disruption rather than true angiogenesis.Dynamic Susceptibility Contrast (DSC) perfusion MRI addresses this gap by evaluating cerebral hemodynamics using T2-weighted signal changes during contrast bolus transit. Key parameters such as relative cerebral blood volume (rCBV) and flow (rCBF) correlate with tumour grade and aggressiveness. Although used globally, limited regional data exists from South India, necessitating further evaluation.

Objectives:To evaluate intracranial tumours using DSC perfusion MRI and quantify rCBV and rCBF. To assess the accuracy of these parameters in distinguishing low- from high-grade gliomas, using histopathology as the gold standard.

Methods:A prospective study was conducted on 35 patients with suspected brain tumours. All underwent conventional and DSC perfusion MRI, followed by histopathological correlation. T2-weighted perfusion imaging was performed post-contrast, and rCBV/rCBF maps were generated. ROIs were placed over enhancing tumour regions and contralateral white matter to compute relative values. Data was analysed statistically, including ROC analysis.