MRI of anterior spinal artery syndrome.

In this serial MRI study a 24 year old man presenting anterior spinal artery syndrome was examined. In the acute stage, spin echo sequences showed an enlarged cervical cord on a T1 weighted image and high signal intensity in the enlarged portion of the cord on a T2 weighted image. The findings were interpreted as oedema in the grey and white matter subsequent to ischaemia. In the chronic stage, inversion recovery techniques revealed a distinct focus in the anterior two thirds of the cord at the low cervical level.