Brown adipose tissue – magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) appearance of these physiological fat deposits in a newborn

Abstract

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) is responsible for thermogenesis in neonates and infants in response to cold environment. 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography is the reference for imaging of BAT, but it is a functional imaging modality and hence lacks sensitivity due to varying patient and environmental factors. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) lacks the use of radioactivity and ionizing radiation and can prove to be an excellent imaging modality to study the distribution of BAT. We report a neonate with sepsis whose MRI study of the neck and upper chest done to look for infective focus revealed classical distribution and signal intensity of BAT.