Advances in postnatal neuroimaging:: relevance to pathogenesis and treatment of brain injury

Despite marked improvements in perinatal practice, perinatal brain injury remains one of the most common complications that causes chronic handicapping conditions [1-3]. Many of the cellular and vascular mechanisms of perinatal brain damage have been studied and show a correlation between the nature of the injury and the maturation of the brain [4-7]. In vivo diagnostic tools are, therefore, needed to assess brain development, to detect and to localize early brain injury, and to monitor interventions that are aimed at minimizing or preventing irreversible brain injury. Magnetic resonance (MR) techniques have become the imaging modality of choice to acquire a more detailed structural, metabolic, and functional assessment of the developing brain. Conventional MR Imaging (MRI) has the potential to identify normal and pathologic brain morphology and provide objective information about the structure of the neonatal brain during development. Functional MRI, such as diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and perfusion and blood-oxygenation-dependent imaging are new methods that provide insight into brain physiology. Magnetic resonance spectroscopy is the unique modality to study brain metabolism and has become an important addition to MRI. This article focuses on recent advances in the application of magnetic resonance techniques in pre- and postnatal neuroimaging of perinatal brain injury.