Abstract
We examined the cerebral blood flow in 6 patients with acute stage vestibular neuritis using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). SPECT images of cerebral blood flow were analyzed using an easy Z-score imaging system (eZIS), a method for statistical image analysis. The analysis results showed cerebral blood flow to be increased in the parieto-insular vestibular cortex (PIVC) contralateral to the affected side, whereas blood flow was decreased bilaterally in the visual cortex and Brodmann area 40 (BA40). These results were identical to those obtained in patients with acute stage vestibular neuritis using PET by Bense et al. However, in our present analysis, increased cerebral blood flow was occasionally not detected in PIVC, rendering some cases unevaluable. Blood flow lowering in BA40 tended to be predominantly left hemispheric, regardless of the diseased side. Although SPECT is considered to be inferior to PET in spatial resolution and quantifiability, we found that cerebral blood flow in patients with acute stage vestibular neuritis can be sufficiently evaluated using eZIS analysis.
