Thalamic neurodegeneration in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis.
Neurology
; 60(12): 1949-54, 2003 Jun 24.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-12821738
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE:
To define the extent of neuronal injury and loss in thalamic gray matter in patients with relapsing-remitting (RR) MS and to characterize how these neuronal pathologic changes are related to disease duration.METHODS:
The authors studied 14 patients with RRMS (Expanded Disability Status Scale score, mean 3.25, range 2.0 to 6.0) and 14 (8 men, 6 women) age-matched healthy controls. Structural MR and MRS studies were performed in a single scanning session using a 3T MR system.RESULTS:
N-acetylaspartate (NAA) concentrations (a measure of the apparent neuronal density) were decreased approximately 11% in the thalami of the patients with RRMS relative to controls (p < 0.05). The patients with RRMS also had an almost 25% lower mean normalized thalamic volume than controls (p < 0.005). Decreases in thalamic NAA concentration correlated strongly with thalamic volume loss for individual patients (r = 0.85, p < 0.01). Both the NAA concentration (r = -0.48, p = 0.044) and normalized thalamic volume (r = -0.60, p = 0.01) were correlated inversely with disease duration. There was a trend for a correlation between the thalamic NAA/creatine (Cr) ratio and the NAA/Cr in the frontal normal-appearing white matter (r = 0.56, p < 0.08).CONCLUSIONS:
The reduction of both NAA concentration and thalamic volume suggests that a neurodegenerative component may contribute to the pathology of MS even in the earlier RR stage. The trend toward a relationship between thalamic NAA/Cr and distant normal-appearing white matter changes implies that there may be a common mechanism for the white matter axonal loss and thalamic neuronal injury.
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Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Tálamo
/
Ácido Aspártico
/
Esclerosis Múltiple Recurrente-Remitente
Límite:
Adult
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Middle aged
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Neurology
Año:
2003
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Reino Unido