MRI Evaluation of Cerebral Microbleeds, Silent Infarct, Iron Deposit with QSM in Sickle Cell Disease and Thalassemia Compared to Healthy Controls

Motivation: Sickle cell disease (SCD) and Thalassemia are inherited blood disorders, and patients are likely to have small vessel disease, silent infarct, and cerebral microbleeds. Goal(s): Multi-parametric MRI was used to evaluate clinically significant findings, and QSM was used to measure iron deposits in various brain regions. Approach: A prospective study was performed by enrolling 30 subjects. The ROIs in the basal ganglia regions were segmented and mapped to QSM to measure susceptivity. Results: Two sickle cell patients had cerebral microbleeds, and two had silent infarcts. The QSM susceptibility was distributed in a wide range, especially in patient groups. Impact: Sickle cell and Thalassemia patients may need blood transfusions, which leads to iron overload. Brain iron may also increase due to microvasculature damage. QSM may be performed to evaluate iron deposit levels and microbleeds to help improve their precision care.