Thanks ladies. :-)
My MRI has been stable for over 2 years, but this is the first time I saw "gliosis" mentioned along with the words "or demyelination".
I thought that MS plaques are gliosis (or lead to gliosis if they are old or black holes), so I was confused... And, of course, everything I read on the net just made me even more confused.
Neuro said it was "good" in that it has been stable, but it's still something that he has to keep an eye on. Yeah, I don't think that one big spot can be passed off as normal. And, like the last MRI, no new info leading to a dx one way or the other.
Thanks Quix for the nice simple explanation of supratentorial/tentorium/infratentorial... I do hope that you are feeling better!!
Take care,
Pat :-)
Hi, there, Kiddo! Good to see you!
Gliosis is, indeed, a brain scar. A place where the normal functioning cells and neurons have been replaced by glial cells in the form of a scar.
The "supratentorial" part of the brain is the cerebrum the tentorium is a strong layer of connective tissue (like a platform or a support) that the top part of the brain rests on. The "infratentorial" part is below that, like the cerebrellum.
Trauma, strokes, infection can all cause areas of gliosis - anything that kills all the brain tissue in that area.
For all its miracles, the MRI just shows us things in shades of gray - literally. So, it is not always possible to say what is tissue death and what is damage like demyelination. Whatever yours is, it is read as unchanged since the last MRI. This MRI didn't give anymore info.
Quix
Good question!
I believe gliosis is a scar. Just not one that has been identified for certain by the Dr. reading your imaging that it's definite "demyelinination." That's just my guess by their use of "or."
Hoping others will chime in...
Nice to see you!
-shell