Öz
Chiari malformation (CM) is a disease in which cerebellar tonsils descend more than 5 mm below the foramen magnum. There is no consensus on how to manage non-symptomatic patients with CM. In our study, we tried to reveal the differences in CSF flow parameters in patients with Chiari malformation by comparing them with the normal healthy group.We evaluated 85 patients with Chiari malformation, who underwent phase contrast CSF flow MRI between January 2016 and December 2019, consecutively. We included individuals aged between 18 and 60 years. In addition, 29 healthy volunteers were included and phase-contrast CSF flow MR imaging was performed. CSF flow parameters including forward volume (FV), reverse volume (RV), aqueductal stroke volume (ASV), mean area, and peak velocity were evaluated. In addition, the diameters of the herniated tonsil and foramen magnum were recorded from volumetric T2 CISS images of CM patients. It was observed that the aqueductal stroke volume increased significantly in CM patients (p = 0.049). The mean area of AS was found to be statistically significantly larger in CM patients compared to the normal group (p <0.001). When the diameters of the herniated tonsil and foramen magnum were compared with the CSF flow parameters; ASV decreased as the diameter of the herniated tonsil increased (p = 0.002, r = -0.333), and as the diameter of the foramen magnum increased, ASV decreased (p = 0.020, r = -0.251). Aqueductus Sylvii level is an anatomical location that can be used in CM patients for the evaluation of CSF flow parameters with phase contrast MR technique, since it is easy and practical and gives more accurate results. Increased ASV and average AS field values are observed in CM patients, and these are unusual CSF flow values.