Diffusion-Weighted Imaging of Cerebritis

Summary: Restricted water diffusion has been used to dis-tinguish pyogenic abscess from other rim-enhancing brain masses; however diffusion-weighted imaging of cerebral infec-tion before capsule formation has rarely been described. We report a case of fungal cerebritis in which water diffusion was more restricted than that of normal contralateral brain and the measured diffusion coefficient was in the range of that reported for pyogenic brain abscess. In the proper clinical setting, cerebritis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of an ill-defined focal brain mass associated with markedly restricted water diffusion. Diffusion-weighted (DW) imaging has been used to diagnose cerebral ischemia in its earliest stages. Re-stricted diffusion, however, is not specific for acute brain ischemia and has been reported in cases of herpes en