ABSTRACT
In children, evaluation of the size of the ventricular system is important. Transcranial Doppler sonography (TCD), a broadly available and easily applicable method that is not hampered by side effects, such as radiation, is a valuable tool for routine examinations. However, standard TCD values of the ventricular system are lacking. In this study, we performed TCD through the temporal acoustic bone window in a large cohort of 1693 healthy children. Of these, 157 had to be excluded because of insufficient bone windows. In the remaining children, a mean width of 1.4 +/- 0.8 mm for the third ventricle, 14.4 +/- 0.8 mm for the right and 14.6 +/- 0.7 mm for the left cella media, and 1.6 +/- 0.7 mm for the right and 1.9 +/- 0.8 mm for the left temporal horn were measured. Side differences are indicated and values are given in relation to age and gender. Inter-rater reproducibility obtained in 25 children was adequate, with no significant difference between the two measurements in any of the parts of the ventricular system measured, rendering these values suitable for reference.
Subject(s)
Cerebral Ventricles/diagnostic imaging , Ultrasonography, Doppler, Transcranial/methods , Adolescent , Aging/physiology , Cerebral Ventricles/anatomy & histology , Cerebral Ventricles/growth & development , Child , Child, Preschool , Female , Humans , Infant , Infant, Newborn , Male , Reference Values , Sex CharacteristicsABSTRACT
Increased echogenicity of the substantia nigra (SN) on transcranial ultrasonography (TCS) is a typical sign in Parkinson's disease (PD). Detected in healthy adults it is assumed to represent a risk factor for nigral injury. We studied at which time point of brain maturation increased signal intensity may occur by performing TCS scans in 109 newborns and children aged 0-192 months. While newborns regularly exhibit SN hyperechogenicity, this echofeature decreases substantially during the first years of life. As SN echogenicity is related to the tissue iron content in adults our findings suggest a failure in SN iron metabolism in some children with increased echogenicity during development which can be disclosed by TCS.
