Objective To investigate the brain metabolic changes and evaluate their spatial distributions after traumatic axonal injury (TAI)in rats by using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy(1H-MRS).Methods The TAI model was made by subjecting the head of the rats to the linear and angular accelerations.The multi-voxel MRS was employed to detect the tissue metabolic state at the levels of hippocampus-caudate and pons prior to injury and at 24 hours after injury.The alterations of NAA/Cr,NAA/Cho and Cho/Cr values as well as the spatial distribution of NAA/Cr reduction were accessed. Immunohistochemical staining for β-APP was used to observe the injured axons. Results A siguificantdecrease in NAA/Cr and NAA/Cho(P<0.05)and subtle increase in Cho/Cr(P>0.05)were observed in rats at 24 hours after TAI in comparison to the pre-injury levels.Notable decrease in NAA/Cr value was observed in the areas including the brain stem,hippocampus,internal capsule,corpus callosum and thalamus,where axonal injuries were confirmed by the histological examination. Conclusion Metabolic imbalances Occur in the brains of rats with TAI.with notable changes in the brain stem and the hippocampus.