Measurement of Human Spinal Cord Blood Flow using Xenon and Computerized Tomography

Abstract

Noninvasive measurement of human spinal cord blood flow (SCBF) has not yet been established. The authors successfully measured human SCBF by using xenon and a CT scanner (Shuttle method). This method was clinically applied in 10 patients without spinal cord pathology. Mean SCBF of the normal adult at the C₅ level was 42.3 ± 6.3 ml/ 100 g/min. CO₂ reactivity in SCBF was also detected. This method may well be used in the clinical study of human SCBF.