ROLE OF MRI BRAIN IN POSTPARTUM NEUROLOGICAL COMPLICATIONS

Dr. Mrudula Babar, *Dr. Seema Grover, Dr. Shailesh Sangani and Dr. Vijaya Late

ABSTRACT

Background: Acute neurological symptoms within 6 weeks after uncomplicated pregnancy and delivery are unexpected and alarming. Although acute neurological and other diseases requiring hospitalization are rare in young women, several are unique to pregnancy and postpartum period, many of which can lead to devastating complications if not recognized early. Method and Material: Forty postpartum patients with clinical suspicion of neurological disorders referred to the department of radio diagnosis from 04-08-2018 to 16-04-2020 underwent MRI of the brain. All MR imaging were performed on Siemens Symphony 1.5 Tesla MRI machine. T1-weighted, T2-weighted, FLAIR and additional sequences of gradient and diffusion weighted imaging were performed for all patients. Magnetic resonance venography and MR angiographies were obtained in specific patients. Results: Patients referred for MRI Brain had a combination of the following symptoms. Headache was the chief complaint in 35 patients (87.5%), 34 patients (85%) had recent onset of convulsions, 26 patients (65%) were drowsy /semi-conscious, 6 patients (15%) were unconscious, 5 patients (12.5%) had fever and 2 patients (5%) had hemiplegia. Abnormal findings on magnetic resonance imaging were observed in 39 out of 40 patients. The most common finding was posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome, PRES, in 24 patients (60%), Infarct in 13 patients (32.5%), Cerebral venous thrombosis in 10 patients (25%), Intra parenchymal hemorrhage in 6 patients (15%), Pontine and extra pontine osmotic demyelination in 3 patients (7.5%), Sub arachnoid hemorrhage and Subdural hematoma were each seen in 2 patients (5%), and infective granuloma in 1 patient (2.5%).

Keywords: MRI – Magnetic Resonance Imaging, PRES- Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome, SAH – Subarachnoid hemorrhage, SDH – Subdural hematoma.