OBJECTIVETo evaluate different degrees of punctate cerebral white matter damage (CWMD) using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), and to investigate the value of DTI for CWMD in preterm infants.

METHODSThirty-one preterm infants who were hospitalized in the Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University between November 2011 and April 2012 were enrolled and divided into focal CWMD (n=11), widespread CWMD (n=10), and normal groups (n=10). The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) and fractional anisotropy (FA) values were determined in the periventricular regions of patients in three groups, and comparison of the two indices between the three groups was performed using one-way analysis of variance. The correlation between the changes in ADC and FA values was analyzed using the Pearson coefficient, and the color-encoded FA maps in the three groups were evaluated.

RESULTSThe ADC values in the focal CWMD and widespread CWMD groups were both significantly higher than in the normal group, while the FA values in the focal CWMD and widespread CWMD groups were both significantly lower than in the normal group. The FA value in the widespread CWMD group was significantly lower than in the focal CWMD group. The color-encoded FA maps after post-processing indicated that the normal group had the highest FA value in the periventricular white matter regions, followed by the focal CWMD group and the widespread CWMD group.

CONCLUSIONSThe DTI technique can quantitatively evaluate the degree of punctate CWMD. The FA value may be more accurate than the ADC value in the evaluation of CWMD.