Abstract

AMORIM, Bárbara Juarez et al. Statistical voxel-wise analysis of ictal SPECT reveals pattern of abnormal perfusion in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy. Arq. Neuro-Psiquiatr. [online]. 2005, vol.63, n.4, pp. 977-983. ISSN 0004-282X.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S0004-282X2005000600014.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the pattern of perfusion abnormalities in ictal and interictal brain perfusion SPECT images (BSI) from patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). METHOD: It was acquired interictal and ictal BSI from 24 patients with refractory TLE. BSIs were analyzed by visual inspection and statistical parametric mapping (SPM2). Statistical analysis compared the patients group to a control group of 50 volunteers. The images from patients with left-TLE were left-right flipped. RESULTS: It was not observed significant perfusional differences in interictal scans with SPM. Ictal BSI in SPM analysis revealed hyperperfusion within ipsilateral temporal lobe (epileptogenic focus) and also contralateral parieto-occipital region, ipsilateral posterior cingulate gyrus, occipital lobes and ipsilateral basal ganglia. Ictal BSI also showed areas of hypoperfusion. CONCLUSION: In a group analysis of ictal BSI of patients with TLE, voxel-wise analysis detects a network of distant regions of perfusional alteration which may play active role in seizure genesis and propagation.

Keywords : brain perfusion; SPECT; SPM; seizures; epilepsy.