A New Method for Semi-Automatic Volumetry of Cerebral Ventricles in Pediatric Neuroimaging

Cci-ebral ventricular volume is an important factor in quantitative neurological diagnosis, for indirectly monitoring the progress of brain damage, e.g. after neonatal white matter damagc (WMD) or associated with neurodegenerative diseases, and for assessing postoperative outcome, e.g. on hydroccphalus patients. A prospective, epidemiologic and neuropsychological NIH funded study examines the effects of early brain damage on selective aspects of cognitive development in children comprising the best documentation of localized neonatal brain damage to date. We describe an efficient method to segment and visualizc the intracerebral fluid spaces in children and adults based on MRT and to quantify ventricular volumes which is (a) robust (for normal and pathological anatomy), (b) reproducible (less than 2 % variation), and (c) fast (less than 5 min).