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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Arquivos Brasileiros de Neurocirurgia: Brazilian Neurosurgery 2023; 42(01): e8-e13
DOI: 10.1055/s-0041-1730417
Original Article

Artifacts in MRI: Villain or Hero? Using Artifacts for Diagnosing Central Nervous System Diseases

Artefatos em RM: vilões ou heróis? Usando os artefatos para diagnóstico de doenças do sistema nervoso central
Gabriela Lopes de Morais 
1   Department of Radiology, Hospital Universitário Cassiano Antônio Moraes, Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Vitória, ES, Brazil
,
Gilmar Filho Peruzini 
1   Department of Radiology, Hospital Universitário Cassiano Antônio Moraes, Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Vitória, ES, Brazil
,
Marcos Rosa-Júnior 
2   Department of Neuroradiology, Hospital Universitário Cassiano Antônio Moraes, Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Vitória, ES, Brazil
› Author Affiliations Funding Gabriela L. de Morais was supported by the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq, in the Portuguese acronym), and Marcos Rosa-Júnior was supported by the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa e Inovação do Espírito Santo – FAPES.
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Abstract

An artifact is a feature present in an image which is not part of the original structure. It can occur as a consequence of several factors. It may be mistaken for pathologic conditions, leading to adverse consequences for the patients. The aim of the present study is to present a selection of the main artifacts described in brain and spinal magnetic resonance images to improve the ability of the physicians to recognize them and to reduce their interference on the final interpretation of a scan. The authors searched the scientific community for artifacts in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which were selected to focus on central nervous system (CNS) findings. With the Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) database from the center where this study was conducted, the authors designated brain and spine MRI scans with conspicuous artifacts to compose the present study. The artifacts were then classified as those that contribute to the diagnosis and those that must be distinguished from pathologic lesions. Considering the novel classification proposed by the present study, physicians might be stimulated to reevaluate their opinions regarding artifacts, perhaps considering them helpful to evaluate certain conditions even if they cannot be fully corrected, as shown by this distinct approach to artifacts with specific findings concerning differential diagnosis of CNS conditions.

Resumo

Um artefato está em uma imagem, mas não faz parte da estrutura original. Ele pode ocorrer como consequência de uma miríade de fatores e pode ser confundido com condições patológicas, levando a consequências adversas para os pacientes. O objetivo do presente estudo é apresentar uma seleção dos principais artefatos descritos em imagens de ressonância magnética (RM) cerebral e da coluna vertebral, a fim de melhorar a capacidade dos médicos de reconhecê-los e reduzir sua interferência na interpretação final. Os autores pesquisaram na literatura por artefatos em imagens de RM, os quais foram selecionados para se concentrar nos achados do sistema nervoso central (SNC). Com o banco de dados Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) do centro onde o presente estudo foi realizado, os autores separaram exames de RM do cérebro e da coluna com artefatos conspícuos para compor o presente estudo. Os artefatos foram então classificados como aqueles que contribuem para o diagnóstico e os que devem ser diferenciados de lesões patológicas. Considerando esta classificação proposta, os médicos podem ser estimulados a reavaliar suas opiniões a partir de artefatos, e estes podem ser úteis para avaliar certas condições, mesmo que não possam ser totalmente corrigidas, como mostrado por esta abordagem distinta para artefatos com achados específicos relativos ao diagnóstico diferencial de condições do SNC.

Keywords

artifacts - MRI - central nervous system

Palavras-chave

artefatos - ressonância magnética - sistema nervoso central

Ethical Approval

This study was approved by the local ethics committee. All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.


Informed Consent

For this type of study, formal consent is not required.


Author Contribution List

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by Morais G. L. and Filho G. P. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Morais G. L., and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.




Publication History

Received: 15 December 2020

Accepted: 09 March 2021

Article published online:
07 December 2021

© 2021. Sociedade Brasileira de Neurocirurgia. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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