Imaging the Ischemic Penumbra with IVIM

Motivation: Non-contrast accurate simultaneous perfusion diffusion could improve study of ischemic penumbra development in pre-clinical stroke research of novel therapeutics. Goal(s): Examine intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) perfusion and diffusion compared to local-AIF DSC in acute stroke with varying compensatory collateral supply Approach: Pre-clinical animal model of middle cerebral artery occlusion with IVIM, T1-bookend dynamic susceptibility (DSC), and diffusion tensor (DTI) MRI. Results: IVIM showed sensitivity to local compensatory collateral flow, transport time, and perfusion-diffusion mismatch in acute ischemic stroke penumbra. IVIM agreed with Local-AIF DSC qCBF and predicted final infarct volume, supporting capture of "local perfusion" with compensatory collateral flow. Impact: As IVIM is a non-contrast method that includes compensatory collateral supply, it poses itself to be a viable candidate for longitudinal measurement of simultaneous perfusion and diffusion in pre-clinical stroke research.