The hazards of lack of co-registration of ictal brain SPECT with MRI: A case report of sinusitis mimicking a brainstem seizure focus.
| Publication Type | Academic Article |
| Authors | Butler T, Hirsch L, Claassen J |
| Journal | BMC Nucl Med |
| Volume | 4 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pagination | 2 |
| Date Published | 11/29/2004 |
| ISSN | 1471-2385 |
| Abstract | BACKGROUND: Single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) following injection of radiotracer during a seizure is known as ictal SPECT. Comparison of an ictal SPECT study to a baseline or interictal study can aid identification of a seizure focus. CASE PRESENTATION: A young woman with encephalitis and refractory seizures underwent brain SPECT during a period of frequent seizure-like episodes, and during a seizure-free period. A focal area of increased radiotracer uptake present only when she was experiencing frequent seizure-like episodes was originally localized to the brainstem, but with later computerized co-registration of SPECT to MRI, was found to lie outside the brain, in the region of the sphenoid sinus. CONCLUSION: Low-resolution SPECT images present difficulties in interpretation, which can be overcome through co-registration to higher-resolution structural images. |
| DOI | 10.1186/1471-2385-4-2 |
| PubMed ID | 15569392 |
| PubMed Central ID | PMC535895 |