Objective: MR digital subtraction angiography (DSA) is a technique for demonstrating the vasculature combining a rapid two-dimensional T1-weighted sequence with a bolus injection of gadolinium. We attempted to determine its contribution to the diagnosis of intracranial meningiomas.
Methods and patients: MR DSA was performed in 18 patients with meningioma as well as in 28 patients with other tumors. The findings were analyzed regarding demonstration of tumor stain and tumor-related vessels.
Results: All meningiomas except one were visualized as a homogeneous and intense stain. Feeding arteries were visualized in 2 patients, and draining or abnormal veins in three. In 21 of the 28 patients with other tumors, tumor stains of varying degrees were demonstrated.
Conclusion: MR DSA can serve as an adjunct to routine MR imaging, because it enables assessment of the hemodynamics of meningiomas and facilitates its differential diagnosis from other tumors.