“MRI brain shows some white spots. What does it mean?”
My mother underwent a brain MRI following a number of symptoms. The scan showed certain white spots or brain lesions. What could this mean?
4 Answers
Richard Grant Hunter
Neurologist
It means multifocal brain disease. This is a very helpful finding for diagnosis. Next the cause has to be established, It could be many things. Hope it is a minor problem.
They are non specific findings. They can be seen in chronic small blood vesse disease from chronic high blood pressure or elevated cholesterol and in some patients with diabetes. Also can be seen in people who smoke tobacco. Also they could represent lack of meyeline in patients with multiple sclerosis. They can be seen also in patients with chronic migraines. You interpret these fidngins in the context of symptoms.
How old is she? What is the pattern of those spots? Are they on MRI T1, T2, or both?
White spots may be seen in several benign conditions such as migraine headache, however if in association with hypertension and diabetes, they may be representative of "mini strokes" which are often "silent" without symptoms. White spots may also indicate a demyelinating process such as multiple sclerosis. Some forms of dementia may also present with white spots on MRI.
