Abstract:

Objective To investigate the caliber, length, distribution and drainage of deep medullary veins by using susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI). Methods Sixty healthy volunteers were examined using SWI on a 3.0T magnetic resonance system. The raw data were transferred to the Extended MR Workspace 2.6.3.4 workstation. The SWI images were reconstructed by using minimum intensity projections (mIPs) technique in the transverse plane. The SW images were combined with the corresponding images of T1WI by using Photoshop CC (Adobe Systems, USA) to visualize the positional relationship between the course of veins and the cerebral structures. Results Firstly, the caliber of deep medullary veins was basically same and ranged from 0.2-0.3mm. Secondly, according to the position, the deep medullary veins were divided into three area: the anterior, central and posterior. Thirdly, the incidence of the deep medullary veins ranged from 4-10 in the anterior area, 8-19 in the central area, 3-7 in the posterior area. Fourthly, the deep medullary veins in the central area were longer than other areas. Finally, the deep medullary veins in the anterior, central, posterior area were respectively drained into the anterior septal vein and anterior caudate vein, the transverse caudate vein, and the medial atrial vein. Conclusion Our study suggests that SWI of the deep medullary veins is feasible to create the cerebral medullary venous network without using a contrast agent and provides more theories to the classification and mechanism about abnormality of deep medullary veins.

Key words: Deep medullary vein, Venous drainage, Susceptibility-weighted imaging, Human