7‐T MRI of the spinal cord can detect lateral corticospinal tract abnormality in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Introduction : Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder affecting lower and upper motor neurons. Degeneration of the lateral corticospinal tract (CST) is a key finding in ALS cervical spinal cord autopsies. We hypothesized that in vivo ultra‐high‐field MRI of the cervical spinal cord can detect abnormality in the CST. Methods : A patient with ALS (disease duration 23 months) and a healthy control were scanned at 7‐T MRI using a 19‐channel coil. Multi‐echo ‐weighted imaging was performed in the spinal cord, covering C2–C6. Cross‐sectional resolution was 0.37 × 0.37 mm 2 . Results : We detected clear signal hyperintensity in both segments of the lateral CST in the ALS patient, which was significant when compared with the normal control subject ( P < 10 −7 ). Conclusion : We believe there are potential benefits of 7‐T MRI for increased sensitivity and spatial accuracy in characterizing pathology in the spinal cord. Muscle Nerve 47: 760–762, 2013