Comparison of radiologic parameters used in patients with normal pressure hydrocephalu

Normal pressure hydrocephalus (NBH) is an important neurological disease that differs from many other causes of dementia in that it can be treated, and its prevalence increases with age. Therefore, early diagnosis is critical in the course of this disease. Many diagnostic methods have been defined with technological developments in the field of radiology. The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of radiologic parameters evaluated by cross-sectional methods in the diagnosis of NBH and to discuss the efficacy of a new parameter, anteroposterior lateral ventricle index (ALVI), in the diagnosis of NBH. The study included 25 patients who were admitted to Süleyman Demirel University Faculty of Medicine between June 2013 and December 2022 with clinical symptoms of NBH, who had regression in clinical findings as a result of LP and normal cerebrospinal fluid opening pressure, and 30 controls who had no known neurologic disorders and whose cranial MRIs showed no pathology other than age-related atrophy. Although there are many studies in the literature on evan index (EI), callosal angle (CA) and lateral ventricular temporal horn width, there are not enough studies on ALVI, which has been recently defined. In our study, we discussed the adequacy of EI, CA, lateral ventricular temporal horn width and ALVI in the diagnosis of NBH. We also evaluated the lateral ventricular craniocaudal length, which we think may be an indirect indicator of lateral ventricular dilatation, together with other parameters. In conclusion, when ALVI is evaluated together with EI, CA and lateral ventricular temporal horn width, we suggest that ALVI has high sensitivity and specificity in the diagnosis of NBH and can be used as a screening method due to its reproducibility and ease of measurement.