rss
J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2004;75:1611-1613 doi:10.1136/jnnp.2003.032417
  • Short report

Cerebral atrophy in myotonic dystrophy: a voxel based morphometric study

  1. G Antonini1,
  2. C Mainero2,
  3. A Romano3,
  4. F Giubilei1,
  5. V Ceschin1,
  6. F Gragnani1,
  7. S Morino1,
  8. M Fiorelli2,
  9. F Soscia4,
  10. A Di Pasquale1,
  11. F Caramia2
  1. 1Neurological Clinic, II Faculty of Medicine, University of Rome “La Sapienza”, Rome, Italy
  2. 2Department of Neurological Sciences, Neuroradiological Section, I Faculty of Medicine, University of Rome “La Sapienza”, Rome, Italy
  3. 3Neuroradiological Section, S. Andrea Hospital, Rome, Italy
  4. 4Psychiatric Clinic, II Faculty of Medicine, University of Rome “La Sapienza”, Rome, Italy
  1. Correspondence to:
 Dr G Antonini
 Neurological Clinic, S. Andrea Hospital, Via di Grottarossa 1035–1039, 00189 Rome, Italy; giovanni.antoniniuniroma1.it
  • Received 17 November 2003
  • Accepted 20 February 2004
  • Revised 14 February 2004

Abstract

Brain involvement in myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) is characterised by cortical atrophy and white matter lesions. We compared the magnetic resonance imaging derived grey matter maps of 22 DM1 patients with those of matched, healthy controls using voxel based morphometry to evaluate the extension of global and regional cortical atrophy in DM1, as well as its relationships with clinical and genetic features. Patients had significantly reduced brain tissue volumes. Grey matter volume was inversely correlated with age; this inverse correlation was significantly stronger in DM1 than in controls. Neither the clinical and genetic characteristics nor white matter lesions were correlated with cortical atrophy. Grey matter atrophy was located mainly in the bilateral frontal and parietal lobes, in the bilateral middle temporal gyrus, and in the left superior temporal and occipital gyrus.

Footnotes

  • Competing interests: none declared

This Article

  1. Abstract
  2. Full text
  3. PDF

Responses

  1. Submit a response
  2. No responses published

Register for free content

The full back archive is now available for all BMJ Journals. Institutional subscribers may access the entire archive as part of their subscription. Personal subscribers will also have access to all content when logged in. Non-subscribers who register have free access to all articles published before 2006 right back to volume 1 issue 1. Register here to access the free archive of all BMJ Journals.

Don't forget to sign up for content alerts so you keep up to date with all the articles as they are published.

BMJ Careers - Latest neurology and neurosurgery jobs