Comparison of Vendor-Provided Volumetry Software and NeuroQuant Using 3D T1-Weighted Images in Subjects with Cognitive Impairment: How Large is the Inter-Method Discrepancy?

Abstract

Background: Determination of inter-method differences between clinically available volumetry methods are essential for the clinical application of brain volumetry in a wider context. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the inter-method reliability and differences between the Siemens morphometry (SM) software and the NeuroQuant (NQ) software. Materials and Methods: MR images of 86 subjects with subjective or objective cognitive impairment were included in this retrospective study. For this study, 3D T1 volume images were obtained in all subjects using a 3T MR scanner (Skyra 3T, Siemens). Volumetric analysis of the 3D T1 volume images was performed using SM and NQ. To analyze the inter-method difference, correlation, and reliability, we used the paired t-test, Bland-Altman plot, Pearson's correlation coefficient, intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), and effect size (ES) using the MedCalc and SPSS software. Results: SM and NQ showed excellent reliability for cortical gray matter, cerebral white matter, and cerebrospinal fluid; and good reliability for intracranial volume, whole brain volume, both thalami, and both hippocampi. In contrast, poor reliability was observed for both basal ganglia including the caudate nucleus, putamen, and pallidum. Paired comparison revealed that while the mean volume of the right hippocampus was not different between the two software, the mean difference in the left hippocampus volume between the two methods was 0.17 ml (P < 0.001). The other brain regions showed significant differences in terms of measured volumes between the two software. Conclusion: SM and NQ provided good-to-excellent reliability in evaluating most brain structures, except for the basal ganglia in patients with cognitive impairment. Researchers and clinicians should be aware of the potential differences in the measured volumes when using these two different software interchangeably.

Evaluation of Reproducibility of Brain Volumetry between Commercial Software, Inbrain and Established Research Purpose Method, FreeSurfer

“…However, in our study, the pallidum showed good reproducibility, which supports the assumption that the low reproducibility is due to a different atlas being used by each software program. 33 …”

Expert Opinions and Recommendations for the Clinical Use of Quantitative Analysis Software for MRI-Based Brain Volumetry

“…이를 바탕으로 2018년 11월 20일 권고안 초안을 KSNR 집담회에서 중간보고하였으며, 2019년 전문위원회를 중심으로 진행한 연구 결과를 추가하고, 2018년 7월부터 2020년 6월까지의 관련 문헌 5건을 추가하여, 권고안을 최종적으로 수정 정리하였다( 9 10 11 12 13 ).…”

Patients with chronic mild or moderate traumatic brain injury have abnormal longitudinal brain volume enlargement more than atrophy

“…NeuroQuant V R generally has been found to have good to excellent reliability with FreeSurfer by our group, 33,34 and others. 30,35,40,74 Given the multiple studies showing good intermethod reliability and other types of reliability for NeuroQuant V R , 8,75,76 we believe that it is likely that the results of the current study would show good reliability with results from studies using programs like FreeSurfer. Nevertheless, it will be important to test this idea directly.…”