Diffusion MR Imaging in the Head and Neck: Principles and Applications

Abstract

Diffusion imaging is a functional MR imaging tool that creates tissue contrast representative of the random, microscopic translational motion of water molecules within human body tissues. Long considered a cornerstone MR imaging sequence for brain imaging, diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) increasingly is used for head and neck imaging. This review reports the current state of diffusion techniques for head and neck imaging, including conventional DWI, DWI trace with apparent diffusion coefficient map, diffusion tensor imaging, intravoxel incoherent motion, and diffusion kurtosis imaging. This article describes background physics, reports supportive evidence and potential pitfalls, highlights technical advances, and details practical clinical applications.

Keywords: Cholesteatoma; Diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI); Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI); Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI); Head and neck imaging; Intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM); MR imaging; Oncologic imaging.