Hesamoddin Jahanian1,2, Kost Elisevich3, Azadeh Yazdan-Shahmorad2, Hamid Soltanian-Zadeh4
1Functional MRI Laboratory, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA; 2Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA; 3Department of Neurosurgery, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit, MI, USA; 4Radiology Image Analysis Lab, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit, MI, USA
The identification of an insular origin of partial epilepsy remains a significant challenge. We hypothesized that in cases of an insular epileptogenicity, a difference in fiber density in the subinsular white matter could be measured. Therefore, a comparative hemispheric study of the subinsular white matter was performed using DTI and tractography in four patients with a unilateral partial epilepsy of insular origin, five patients with unilateral medial temporal lobe epilepsy and ten nonepileptic subjects. Measured fiber density values shows a significant difference in the insular epilepsy group but not in the medial temporal lobe epilepsy group or any difference between right and left sides in the nonepileptic group.