The cerebellum in children with spina bifida and Chiari II malformation: Quantitative volumetrics by region

Abstract

Few volumetric MRI studies of the entire cerebellum have been published; even less quantitative information is available in patients with hindbrain malformations, including the Chiari II malformation which is ubiquitous in patients with spina bifida meningomyelocele (SBM). In the present study, regional volumetric analyses of the cerebellum were conducted in children with SBM/Chiari II and typically developing (TD) children. Total cerebellar volume was significantly reduced in the SBM group relative to the TD group. After correcting for total cerebellum volume, and relative to the TD group, the posterior lobe was significantly reduced in SBM, the corpus medullare was not different, and the anterior lobe was significantly enlarged. Children with thoracic level lesions had smaller cerebellar volumes relative to those with lumbar/sacral lesions, who had smaller volumes compared to TD children. The reduction in cerebellar volume in the group with SBM represents not a change in linear scaling but rather a reconfiguration involving anterior lobe enlargement and posterior lobe reduction.

Description

Keywords

Cerebellum, Volumetrics, Parcellation, Spina bifida, Chiari II

Citation

Copyright 2010 The Cerebellum. This is a post-print version of a published paper that is available at: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12311-010-0157-x. Recommended citation: Juranek, Jenifer, Maureen Dennis, Paul T. Cirino, Lyla El-Messidi, and Jack M. Fletcher. "The Cerebellum in Children with Spina Bifida and Chiari II Malformation: Quantitative Volumetrics by Region." The Cerebellum 9, no. 2 (2010): 240-248. doi: 10.1007/s12311-010-0157-x. This item has been deposited in accordance with publisher copyright and licensing terms and with the author's permission.