Syringomyelia fluid dynamics and cord motion revealed by serendipitous null point artifacts during cine MRI

Abstract

SUMMARY: Dynamic MR imaging was used to evaluate a cervical syrinx in an adolescent boy with an associated hindbrain herniation. Null artifacts were present on one of the sequences that allowed simultaneous high-resolution visualization of syrinx fluid motion and the anatomy of the syrinx walls. A brief review of the theories of syrinx formation and propagation is provided with a comment on why the Williams "slosh" theory of syrinx progression is supported by our unique imaging.