Effect of gravity on brain structure as indicated on upright computed tomography

Abstract

AbstractWe aimed to use upright computed tomography (CT) to depict posture-related changes in the brain tissue under normal gravity. Thirty-two asymptomatic volunteers underwent upright CT in the sitting position and conventional CT in the supine position on the same day. We compared the shift of the pineal body, cerebellar tonsil, the length of pituitary stalk, optic nerve sheath area and perimeter (ONSA and ONSP, respectively), and lateral ventricular volume between the supine and sitting positions. We also compared shape changes of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) spaces at different sites between both positions. In the sitting position, the pineal body shifted 0.68 ± 0.27 mm in the ventral direction and 0.76 ± 0.24 mm in the caudal direction, the length of pituitary stalk decreased by 1.23 ± 0.71 mm, the cerebellar tonsil descended by 2.10 ± 0.86 mm, the right ONSA decreased by 15.21 ± 6.54%, the left ONSA decreased by 15.30 ± 7.37%, the right ONSP decreased by 8.52 ± 3.91%, the left ONSP decreased by 8.20 ± 4.38%, and the lateral ventricular volume decreased by 5.07 ± 3.24% (all P < 0.001). We also observed changes in the shape of CSF spaces with changes in posture. We concluded that the intracranial structure of healthy subjects and volume of ventricles changed according to posture on Earth.