Neuroimaging of pediatric intracranial infection--part 1: techniques and bacterial infections.

Conventional and advanced neuroimaging have become central to the diagnosis of infectious diseases of the pediatric central nervous system. Imaging modalities used by (pediatric) neuroradiologists include cranial ultrasound, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging, including advanced techniques such as diffusion weighted or tensor imaging, perfusion weighted imaging, susceptibility weighted imaging, and (1) H magnetic resonance spectroscopy. In this first of a two part review, imaging techniques in general and the imaging findings of bacterial infections of the intracranial compartment including epidural empyema, subdural empyema, meningitis, cerebritis, cerebral abscess, and pyogenic intraventricular empyema (ventriculitis) are discussed.