Tractography of peripheral nerves and skeletal muscles

Abstract

The assessment of human peripheral nerves and skeletal muscles by means of diffusion tensor imaging and tractograpy has been a recent area of research. These techniques have been successfully applied in both volunteers and patients, providing non-invasively, quantitative microstructural parameters (mainly mean fractional anisotropy and apparent diffusion coefficient) and offering a three-dimensional visualization tool of nerves and muscles fibers. DTI and tractography may reveal abnormalities that are beyond the resolution of conventional MR techniques and hence open the way to potential clinical applications. In this article, we will first summarize the current state of DTI and tractography in the evaluation of peripheral nerves and skeletal muscles as well as their potential future clinical applications. Then, we will address important technical considerations, which understanding is necessary to appropriately apply DTI and tractograhy, and in order to understand the current limitations of these innovative and promising techniques.