Clinical significance of dilated Virchow-Robin spaces in mild traumatic brain injury

Primary objective: To investigate the relationship between the number of dilated Virchow-Robin spaces (VRS) and neurocognitive findings in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Research design: Thirty-eight patients with TBI and 21 controls were studied. Methods and procedures: Fifteen patients underwent MRI within a mean interval of 5.4 (range 1-12) days from the brain injury and 23 after an average period of 5.5 (range 0.2-31) years. All subjects were examined with a battery of 13 neuropsychological tests (NP). Main outcomes and results: The average number of VRS was significantly higher in patients than in controls. There were no significant differences between patients and controls in terms of NP tests. The number of VRS showed a significant inverse correlation with processing speed and a positive correlation with visual perceptual of attention only in patients studied within a short delay of trauma. Conclusions: VRS are not directly associated to neurocognitive findings, suggesting that they may represent a result of the shear-strain injury.