Visualization of Endolymphatic Hydrops in Ménière's Disease with Single-dose Intravenous Gadolinium-based Contrast Media using Heavily T2-weighted 3D-FLAIR

Abstract

Heavily T₂-weighted 3-dimensional fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (hT₂W-3D-FLAIR) technique has been reported to be more sensitive than conventional 3D-FLAIR in detecting low concentrations of gadolinium-based contrast media (GBCM) in fluid. We applied hT₂W-3D-FLAIR to visualize endolymphatic hydrops of Ménière's disease in 3 patients 4 hours after single-dose intravenous injection of GBCM and successfully visualized endolymphatic hydrops in either the cochlea or vestibule in all patients. This technique can be implemented in a clinical setting.