Accuracy of fast spin echo magnetic resonance imaging in the diagnosis of vestibular schwannoma

Abstract

Purpose: An ideal screening test is noninvasive, inexpensive, and has a high specificity and sensitivity. Auditory brain-stem response testing has been the usual screening test for the diagnosis of vestibular schwannoma, although its accuracy in diagnosing small vestibular schwannomas has caused its effectiveness as a screening test to be questioned. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with gadolinium has a high sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of vestibular schwannoma. Its use as a screening test for vestibular schwannoma has been limited due to its high cost. Fast spin echo MRI is a technique that provides T2-weighted images with excellent contrast between fluid and neural structures, and its cost is a fraction of a gadolinium MRI scan. This study compares the accuracy of fast spin echo MRI to gadolinium MRI in the diagnosis of vestibular schwannoma.

Materials & methods: Twenty-five patients (50 ears) in whom there was a clinical suspicion of vestibular schwannoma were scanned with both modalities. All studies were read independently and scored as positive, negative, or indeterminate.

Results: There were 11 true positives and 39 true negatives. There were no false positives or negatives, resulting in a sensitivity of 100% and a specificity of 100%.

Conclusion: Fast spin echo MRI appears to be an excellent choice as a screening test for vestibular schwannoma due to its low cost, noninvasiveness, and high sensitivity and specificity.