Abstract
Background: While in symptomatic forms of dystonia cerebral pathology is by definition present, it is unclear so far whether disease is associated with microstructural cerebral changes in idiopathic dystonia. Previous quantitative MRI (qMRI) studies assessing cerebral tissue composition in idiopathic dystonia revealed conflicting results.Objective: Using multimodal qMRI, the presented study aimed to investigate alterations in different cerebral microstructural compartments associated with idiopathic cervical dystonia in vivo.Methods: Mapping of T1, T2, , and proton density (PD) was performed in 17 patients with idiopathic cervical dystonia and 29 matched healthy control subjects. Statistical comparisons of the parametric maps between groups were conducted for various regions of interest (ROI), including major basal ganglia nuclei, the thalamus, white matter, and the cerebellum, and voxel-wise for the whole brain.Results: Neither whole brain voxel-wise statistics nor ROI-based analyses revealed significant group differences for any qMRI parameter under investigation.Conclusions: The negative findings of this qMRI study argue against the presence of overt microstructural tissue change in patients with idiopathic cervical dystonia. The results seem to support a common view that idiopathic cervical dystonia might primarily resemble a functional network disease.
Highlights
Idiopathic focal dystonias are movement disorders of unknown cause defined by presence of sustained or intermittent muscle contractions causing abnormal, often repetitive movements, postures or both, which affect a single body region [1]
While in symptomatic forms of dystonia cerebral pathology is by definition present, it is not yet clear whether development of idiopathic dystonia is driven by microstructural cerebral
Most previous studies are based on conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques showing mixed signal contrasts, which cannot be linked to the underlying microstructural tissue changes
Summary
Idiopathic focal dystonias are movement disorders of unknown cause defined by presence of sustained or intermittent muscle contractions causing abnormal, often repetitive movements, postures or both, which affect a single body region [1]. While in symptomatic forms of dystonia cerebral pathology is by definition present, it is not yet clear whether development of idiopathic dystonia is driven by microstructural cerebral. Well-defined physical parameters unaffected by hardwarespecific bias, including T1, T2, and T∗2 relaxation times, and proton density (PD), can be obtained using quantitative MRI (qMRI) [18]. These qMRI parameters can be more directly attributed to certain microstructural tissue properties, which makes them promising candidates for investigations of patients with neurological disorders in general. While in symptomatic forms of dystonia cerebral pathology is by definition present, it is unclear so far whether disease is associated with microstructural cerebral changes in idiopathic dystonia. Previous quantitative MRI (qMRI) studies assessing cerebral tissue composition in idiopathic dystonia revealed conflicting results
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
