Age Related Differences in Brain Iron Detected In Vivo at 3T with Quantitative MRI: Comparison of R2, R2' & R2*

Catherine Anusha Mallik¹, David J. Lythgoe¹, Gareth J. Barker¹

Increasing brain iron concentrations are part of the normal aging process, with differences in iron levels between younger and older adults in basal ganglia structures comparable to differences reported in pathological cases (compared to age-matched controls). Using the GESE (Gradient-Echo Spin-Echo) sequence R2, R2' and R2* were measured in two groups (n=6 in each group) of different ages. Significant differences (p <0.05) with age were detected in the substantia nigra for both R2' and R2*. No significant differences in any of the measures were found in white matter.