Thalamic Involvement in Fluctuating Cognition in Dementia with Lewy Bodies: Magnetic Resonance Evidences.

ABSTRACT: Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) is characterized by fluctuation in cognition and attention. Thalamocortical connectivity and integrity of thalami are central to attentional function. We hypothesize that DLB patients with marked and frequent fluctuating cognition (flCog) have a loss of thalamocortical connectivity, an intrinsic disruption to thalamic structure and imbalances in thalamic neurotransmitter levels. To test this, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and proton MR spectroscopy on thalami were performed on 16 DLB, 16 Alzheimer's disease (AD) and 13 healthy subjects. MRI and DTI were combined to subdivide thalami according to their cortical connectivity and to investigate microstructural changes in connectivity-defined thalamic regions. Compared with con

SUBMITTER: Delli Pizzi S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4585510 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature