Brain Tumors: Diagnostic Tests

Obligatory medical device diagnostics.

  • Magnetic resonance imaging of the skull (cranial MRI or cMRI) with intravenous contrast [gold standard]-to exclude brain tumor; also for focal seizures without known CNS pathology (central nervous system disease signs).
  • Computed tomography of the skull (cranial CT or cCT) with intravenous contrast agent – for tumors with calcifications or bone infiltration.

Optional medical device diagnostics – depending on the results of the history, physical examination, laboratory diagnostics and obligatory medical device diagnostics – for differential diagnostic clarification.

  • Encephalogram (EEG; recording of the electrical activity of the brain) – useful only in a few cases.
  • X-rays of the skull, in two planes
  • Stereotactic biopsy with histological workup.
  • Positron emission tomography (PET; nuclear medicine procedure that allows cross-sectional imaging of living organisms by visualizing the distribution patterns of weak radioactive substances).
  • MR proton spectroscopy (radiological technique that allows better differentiation of neoplastic from non-neoplastic brain lesions through measurable metabolite signal intensities (choline, N-acetyl aspartate, creatine, llactate, lipids))
  • Transcranial sonography (TCS): imaging procedure that uses ultrasound to visualize CNS structures within the cranial cavity – for clarification of intracranial pressure symptomatology [visualization of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) buildup/accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid].