Abstract
Posterior cortical atrophy (PCA) is characterized predominantly by visual dysfunction that arises from bilateral impairments in occipital, parietal, and temporal regions of the brain. PCA is clinically identified based primarily on visual symptoms and neuroimaging findings. Region-specific gray and white matter deficits have been discussed in detail, and are associated with clinical manifestations that present with similar patterns of perfusion and metabolic findings. Here, we discuss both structural and functional changes in the ventral and dorsal visual streams along with their underlying relationships. We also discuss the most recent developments in neuroimaging characteristics and summarize correlations between distinct neuroimaging presentations.
Highlights
Posterior cortical atrophy (PCA) was initially described by Benson et al as a progressive neurodegenerative dementia with visual, literary, and numerical deficits [1,2,3,4]
PCA differs from typical Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in that unlike amnesic AD in which the disorder is mainly located in the default mode network, the anatomical and functional damage in PCA is primarily located in higher visual networks [9]
Asymmetric changes in the posterior cerebral regions is a characteristic of PCA that has been shown using a variety of neuroimaging techniques, including single-photon emission computed tomography perfusion [10], voxel-based morphometry (VBM) for gray matter (GM)
Summary
Posterior cortical atrophy (PCA) is characterized predominantly by visual dysfunction that arises from bilateral impairments in occipital, parietal, and temporal regions of the brain. PCA is clinically identified based primarily on visual symptoms and neuroimaging findings. Region-specific gray and white matter deficits have been discussed in detail, and are associated with clinical manifestations that present with similar patterns of perfusion and metabolic findings. We discuss both structural and functional changes in the ventral and dorsal visual streams along with their underlying relationships. We discuss the most recent developments in neuroimaging characteristics and summarize correlations between distinct neuroimaging presentations
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