BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Widespread cerebral changes are observed in advanced stages of Parkinson disease (PD), suggesting that PD is a multisystem disorder. We investigated with MR imaging whether global brain changes are present in early clinical stages of PD and correlated the findings with the type of clinical presentation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: T1-weighted images and mean diffusivity and fractional anisotropy (FA) maps calculated from diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) were obtained in 27 patients with de novo drug-naïve PD, who were classified according to the clinical features in tremor-dominant type (n = 13), akinetic-rigid type (n = 11), and mixed type (n = 3). Sixteen healthy subjects provided control data. With SIENAX software, total brain, gray matter (GM), and white matter (WM) volumes were computed from T1-weighted images, whereas brain histograms were obtained from mean diffusivity and FA maps. RESULTS: Total brain, GM and WM volumes were not significantly different in patients as a whole or subgroups and controls. As compared with controls, patients with PD as a whole and patients with the akinetic-rigid type showed an increase (P </= .01) of the twenty-fifth percentile of the FA histogram. In patients with the akinetic-rigid type, there also was a trend toward an increase of the mean and fiftieth and seventy-fifth percentiles, and a reduction of the skewness of the FA histogram. Patients with tremor-dominant type showed a trend toward an increase of the twenty-fifth percentile of the FA histogram. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with de novo PD, there is an increase of FA values, more pronounced in patients with the akinetic-rigid type, probably reflecting diffuse subtle GM loss. This is in line with the hypothesis that widespread neurodegeneration is already present at the time of the clinical onset.
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Widespread cerebral changes are observed in advanced stages of Parkinson disease (PD), suggesting that PD is a multisystem disorder. We investigated with MR imaging whether global brain changes are present in early clinical stages of PD and correlated the findings with the type of clinical presentation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: T1-weighted images and mean diffusivity and fractional anisotropy (FA) maps calculated from diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) were obtained in 27 patients with de novo drug-naïve PD, who were classified according to the clinical features in tremor-dominant type (n = 13), akinetic-rigid type (n = 11), and mixed type (n = 3). Sixteen healthy subjects provided control data. With SIENAX software, total brain, gray matter (GM), and white matter (WM) volumes were computed from T1-weighted images, whereas brain histograms were obtained from mean diffusivity and FA maps. RESULTS: Total brain, GM and WM volumes were not significantly different in patients as a whole or subgroups and controls. As compared with controls, patients with PD as a whole and patients with the akinetic-rigid type showed an increase (P </= .01) of the twenty-fifth percentile of the FA histogram. In patients with the akinetic-rigid type, there also was a trend toward an increase of the mean and fiftieth and seventy-fifth percentiles, and a reduction of the skewness of the FA histogram. Patients with tremor-dominant type showed a trend toward an increase of the twenty-fifth percentile of the FA histogram. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with de novo PD, there is an increase of FA values, more pronounced in patients with the akinetic-rigid type, probably reflecting diffuse subtle GM loss. This is in line with the hypothesis that widespread neurodegeneration is already present at the time of the clinical onset.
Authors: Christoph Scherfler; Michael F Schocke; Klaus Seppi; Regina Esterhammer; Christian Brenneis; Werner Jaschke; Gregor K Wenning; Werner Poewe Journal: Brain Date: 2005-11-04 Impact factor: 13.501
Authors: Y Abe; T Kachi; T Kato; Y Arahata; T Yamada; Y Washimi; K Iwai; K Ito; N Yanagisawa; G Sobue Journal: J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry Date: 2003-04 Impact factor: 10.154
Authors: Michael F H Schocke; Klaus Seppi; Regina Esterhammer; Christian Kremser; Katherina J Mair; Benedikt V Czermak; Werner Jaschke; Werner Poewe; Gregor K Wenning Journal: Neuroimage Date: 2004-04 Impact factor: 6.556
Authors: Richard Camicioli; M Milar Moore; Anthony Kinney; Elizabeth Corbridge; Kathryn Glassberg; Jeffrey A Kaye Journal: Mov Disord Date: 2003-07 Impact factor: 10.338
Authors: M T Hu; S D Taylor-Robinson; K R Chaudhuri; J D Bell; C Labbé; V J Cunningham; M J Koepp; A Hammers; R G Morris; N Turjanski; D J Brooks Journal: Brain Date: 2000-02 Impact factor: 13.501
Authors: Noemí Fabelo; Virginia Martín; Gabriel Santpere; Raquel Marín; Laia Torrent; Isidre Ferrer; Mario Díaz Journal: Mol Med Date: 2011-06-22 Impact factor: 6.354
Authors: M Mascalchi; N Toschi; M Giannelli; A Ginestroni; R Della Nave; E Nicolai; A Bianchi; C Tessa; E Salvatore; M Aiello; A Soricelli; S Diciotti Journal: AJNR Am J Neuroradiol Date: 2015-04-16 Impact factor: 3.825