Spot the new lesion: a case report of intra-MRI cerebral haemorrhage with discussion of previous literature

The appearance of intracranial haemorrhage on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is complex and depends on its evolution over time. The ability of the MRI to detect hyperacute haemorrhage has been debated as it seems to depend on several factors (ie, delay of imaging, MRI field strength, imaging technique). We present the first case of intracranial haemorrhage occurring during MRI acquisition in a 61-year-old female suffering a severe hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy from a suicide attempt by hanging. The imaging characteristics of the haematoma differ from what has been described in the past, as it lacks the typical peripheral T2 and T2* hypointensity usually seen in hyperacute haematomas. We discuss previous literature in order to explain these peculiar imaging features.