Magnetic Resonance of Myelination and Myelin Disorders

by Marjo S. van der Knaap, Jaap Valk

2005 · Springer Science & Business Media

Our thanks go to our colleagues at the VU Univer- Preface to the Third Edition sity Medical Center and to those in other hospitals Reading through the prefaces of the two previous edi- who referred their patients to us. We are indebted to tions,we can say that much of what was said there still all colleagues who allowed us to use their MR images, holds. At the same time,however,much has changed. published or unpublished,making it possible for us to There has been immense progress in the technical present illustrations of nearly all known white matter possibilities of magnetic resonance and in the know- disorders. Two colleagues were particularly helpful ledge of genetic defects, biochemical abnormalities, and provided us with essential and unpublished f- and cellular processes underlying myelin disorders. ures: our friends Susan Blaser,from the Hospital for This immense progress has prompted us to embark Sick Children in Toronto,and Zoltán Patay,from the upon the enormous task of rewriting the previous King Faisal Hospital in Riyadh. edition and adding 40 chapters. In doing so we have Many people at the VU University Medical Center tried to cover most white matter disorders,hereditary have been of great technical help to us in producing and acquired,and to present a collection of images to high quality images and in providing secretarial illustrate the field to the fullest possible extent. This assistance. The contributions of these people are edition will therefore be more complete than the pre- mentioned separately in the acknowledgements.

Magnetic Resonance of Myelin, Myelination and Myelin Disorders

by Marjo S. van der Knaap, Jacob Valk

2013 · Springer Science & Business Media

The first edition of this book was well received by readers and reviewers and we are very grateful for the positive reactions. We were convinced then, and even more now, that MRI and MRS have much to offer in diagnosis, therapy monitoring and research of hereditary and acquired myelin disorders. In the last few years, a great deal of new information has come available, concern ing the genetic basis of inborn errors of metabolism and neurodegenerative disor ders, the role of subcellular structures, the enzyme biochemistry, the pathophysio logical mechanisms of posthypoxic-ischemic cerebral damage, and the inflammato ry processes in infectious and inflammatory disorders. MR images of many rare disorders have become available, either in our own experience or published by other groups. MR spectroscopy could confirm its role in certain clinical applica tions. Because of these developments, it was necessary for us to rewrite the book almost completely. In some fields developments are so fast that we may not have caught all the latest developments. The pattern of the new approaches has, however, been established, making the assimilation of newly available information easy. We are extremely grateful for the help of colleagues to make this book as com plete as possible. The positive reactions of those from whom we requested MR pictures or other forms of support were of enormous encouragement to us during our efforts to complete this project. We hope this work will be as warmly welcomed by our colleagues as the first edition.