Study on brain glucose metabolic networks in Parkinson’s disease patients with visual spatial dysfunction by 18F-FDG PET imaging

Abstract

Aim: To assess the changes of brain glucose metabolism and abnormal intracerebral loop in early Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients with visual spatial dysfunction by [Formula: see text]F-fluorodeoxyglucose ([Formula: see text]F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) imaging. Materials and Methods: This study includes three groups: early PD patients with visual spatial dysfunction ([Formula: see text]), early PD patients without visual spatial dysfunction ([Formula: see text]) and healthy controls ([Formula: see text]). Resting-state [Formula: see text]F-FDG PET was performed to obtain the imaging of brain glucose metabolism. Statistical Parametric Mapping (SPM) was used for data analyses to compare the brain glucose metabolic changes among different groups. Results: Compared with the healthy controls, early PD patients (with/without visual spatial dysfunction) showed hypermetabolism in putamen, globus pallidus, thalamus, pons, cerebellum and primary motor cortex, and hypometabolism in part of the occipital and temporal lobes. Compared with early PD patients without visual spatial dysfunction, those with visual spatial dysfunction further showed hypometabolism in visual regions including bilateral lateral prefrontal cortices and posterior parietal lobules, besides occipital and temporal lobes. Conclusion: The occurrence of abnormal glucose metabolism in the brain visual processing areas was closely associated with visual spatial dysfunction in PD patients.