Spinal cord tract diffusion tensor imaging reveals disability substrate in demyelinating disease.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

This study assessed the tissue integrity of major cervical cord tracts by using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to determine the relationship with specific clinical functions carried by those tracts.

Methods

This was a cross-sectional study of 37 patients with multiple sclerosis or neuromyelitis optica with remote cervical cord disease. Finger vibratory thresholds, 25-foot timed walk (25FTW), 9-hole peg test (9HPT), and Expanded Disability Status Scale were determined. DTI covered cervical regions C1 through C6 with 17 5-mm slices (0.9 × 0.9 mm in-plane resolution). Regions of interest included posterior columns (PCs) and lateral corticospinal tracts (CSTs). Hierarchical linear mixed-effect modeling included covariates of disease subtype (multiple sclerosis vs neuro

SUBMITTER: Naismith RT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3721096 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature