What is "hyperintensity"

n. An area of high intensity on a magnetic resonance imaging scan of the brain.

Hyperintensities refer to areas of high intensity on types of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of the human brain or that of other mammals. These small regions of high intensity are observed on T2 weighted MRI images (typically created using 3D FLAIR) within cerebral white matter (white matter lesions, white matter hyperintensities or WMH) or subcortical gray matter (gray matter hyperintensities or GMH). They are usually seen in normal aging but also in a number of neurological disorders and psychiatric illnesses. For example, deep white matter hyperintensites are 2.5 to 3 times more likely to occur in bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder than control subjects. WMH volume, calculated as a potential diagnostic measure, has been shown to correlate to certain cognitive factors. Hyperintensities appear as "bright signals" (bright areas) on an MRI image and the term "bright signal" is occasionally used as a synonym for a hyperintensity.

Hyperintensities are commonly divided into 3 types depending on the region of the brain where they are found. Deep white matter hyperintensites occur deep within white matter, periventricular white matter hyperintensities occur adjacent to the lateral ventricles and subcortical hyperintensities occur in the basal ganglia.

Hyperintensities are often seen in auto immune diseases that have effects on the brain.

Postmortem studies combined with MRI suggest that hyperintensities are dilated perivascular spaces, or demyelination caused by reduced local blood flow.