Abstract
SUMMARY: DWI is a useful technique for the evaluation of cholesteatomas. It can be used to detect them when the physical examination is difficult and CT findings are equivocal, and it is especially useful in the evaluation of recurrent cholesteatoma. Initial DWI techniques only detected larger cholesteatomas, >5 mm, due to limitations of section thickness and prominent skull base artifacts. Newer techniques allow detection of smaller lesions and may be sufficient to replace second-look surgery in patients with prior cholesteatoma resection.
Abbreviations
- ASSET
- array spatial sensitivity encoding technique
- DWI
- diffusion-weighted imaging
- EPI
- echo-planar imaging
- HASTE
- half-Fourier acquired single-shot turbo spin-echo
- PROPELLER
- periodically rotated overlapping parallel lines with enhanced reconstruction
- SNR
- signal intensity–to-noise ratio
- SS TSE
- single-shot TSE
- TSE
- turbo spin-echo
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