Cortical thickness is related to working memory performance after non-invasive brain stimulation

Non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) probing the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) has been shown to have little effect on working memory. The variability of NIBS responses might be explained by inter-subject brain anatomical variability. We investigated whether baseline cortical brain thickness of regions of interest was associated with working memory performance after NIBS by performing a secondary analysis of previously published research. Structural magnetic resonance imaging data were analyzed from healthy subjects who received transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), intermittent theta-burst stimulation (iTBS), and placebo. Twenty-two participants were randomly assigned to receive all the interventions in a random order. The working memory task was conducted after the end of each NIBS session. Regions of interest were the bilateral DLPFC, medial prefrontal cortex, and posterior cingulate cortex. Overall, 66 NIBS sessions were performed. Findings revealed a negative significant association between cortical thickness of the bilateral dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and reaction time for both tDCS (left: P=0.045, right: P=0.037) and iTBS (left: P=0.007, right: P=0.007) compared to placebo. A significant positive association was found for iTBS and posterior cingulate cortex (P=0.03). No association was found for accuracy. Our findings provide the first evidence that individual cortical thickness of healthy subjects might be associated with working memory performance following different NIBS interventions. Therefore, cortical thickness could explain - to some extent - the heterogeneous effects of NIBS probing the DLPFC.

Abnormal topology of cortical thickness covariance network and altered functional connectivity in patients with anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor encephalitis / 中华行为医学与脑科学杂志

Objective:To explore the changes in topological attributes of structural covariance network based on cortical thickness and the brain functional activities in patients with anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) encephalitis by graph theory and functional connectivity (FC) analyses, and to investigate whether these changes were correlated to cognitive impairment.Methods:A total of 33 patients with anti-NMDAR encephalitis from Department of Neurology of the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University(patient group) and 35 healthy controls(control group) with matched gender, age, and education were included from July 2018 to November 2021.All subjects received cognitive function assessments, structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging scans.Structural covariance networks were constructed in the two groups based on cortical thickness values and topological characteristics of networks were computed.A non-parametric permutation test which repeated 1 000 times was used to compare the characteristics of the networks between the two groups.Brain regions with abnormal topology were defined as region of interest(ROI), and FC values in global brain level were calculated.SPM 12 and RESTplus were used to identify the brain regions with significant differences in FC values between the two groups.Finally, Spearman correlation analysis between FC values of significant brain regions and cognitive scores were performed by SPSS 24.0.Results:The cognitive score of patients with anti-NMDAR encephalitis (27.0(23.5, 28.0)) was lower than that in control group(29.0(27.0, 30.0)) ( Z=-3.029, P=0.002). Graph theory analysis found that the patients showed significantly increased clustering coefficients ( P=0.004) and decreased global efficiency ( P=0.004) compared with healthy controls.Moreover, the nodal efficiency of left ventral posterior cingulate cortex (vPCC) and right dorsal posterior cingulate cortex (dPCC), as well as the nodal degree centrality of left vPCC and left polar planum of superior temporal gyrus (ppSTG) in patient group were significantly decreased ( P<0.05, FDR corrected) compared with control group.FC analysis showed the increased FC values between left vPCC and posterior cerebellum (MNI: x=6, y=-66, z=-21), as well as between left ppSTG and anterior cerebellum (MNI: x=6, y=-54, z=-12) (GRF corrected, voxel level P<0.001, cluster level P<0.05) in patient grooup.The FC values between left vPCC and posterior cerebellum were negatively correlated with the cognitive scores ( r=-0.403, P=0.020). Conclusion:Patients with anti-NMDAR encephalitis show abnormal topology of structural covariance network based on cortical thickness and altered FC values, some of which are correlated to cognition and may be the underlying neural mechanism of cognitive impairment in patients with anti-NMDAR encephalitis.

MRI cortical thickness of bulbar region and impacts on survival in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients / 西安交通大学学报(医学版)

【Objective】 To investigate cortical thickness changes in the face-head region of the primary motor cortex (PMC) and its effect on survival in amyotrophy lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients. 【Methods】 A retrospective analysis was performed on 105 ALS patients who underwent head MRI scan at the same time. The A4hf (face-head) region of PMC was used as the region of interest (ROI). According to clinical symptoms, patients were divided into two groups: bulbar involvement and non-bulbar involvement. The differences of clinical features and cortical thickness in ROI were analyzed. According to the symptoms of bulbar palsy, physical examination of nervous system and EMG of tongue muscle, the patients with bulbar palsy were divided into lower motor neuron (LMN), upper motor neuron (UMN) and LMN+UMN groups. The differences of bulbar subgroup score and ROI of cortical thickness were analyzed. Age at onset, body mass index, delayed time of diagnosis, bulbar subgroup score, and ROI cortical thickness were included in survival analysis. 【Results】 ① The ROI cortical thickness was significantly lower in bulbar involvement group than non-bulbar involvement group (-0.198±0.87 vs. 0.235±0.95, P=0.017). ② There were no significant differences in the bulbar subgroup scores or cortical thickness of ROI between LMN, UMN and LMN+UMN groups (P>0.05). ③ Survival analysis showed age of onset (HR=3.296, 95% CI:1.63-6.664, P=0.001), delayed time of diagnosis (HR=0.361, 95% CI:0.184-0.705, P=0.003), bulbar subgroup score (HR 0.389, 95% CI:0.174-0.868, P=0.021), and ZRE_ROI cortical thickness (HR=2.309, 95% CI:1.046-5.096, P=0.038) were independent influencing factors of ALS survival. 【Conclusion】 Cortical thickness in A4hf (face-head) region can more objectively reflect UMN signs of region bulbar. In addition to age of onset and delayed time of diagnosis, bulbar subgroup score and cortical thickness of face-head region are also independent influencing factors, and cortical thinning in face-head region is a protective factor for survival of ALS patients.

Computed Tomographic Study of Occipital Thickness in Ethnic Malays

@#Introduction: Occipitocervical fusion is performed to address craniocervical and atlantoaxial instability. A screw of at least 8mm is needed for biomechanical stability. Occipital thickness of Malay ethnicity is unknown, and this study presents the optimal screw placement positions for occiput screw in this population. This was a retrospective crosssectional study of 100 Malays who underwent computed tomography (CT) scan for brain assessment. To measure the occipital bone thickness of Malay ethnicity at the area of common screw placement for occipitocervical fusion. The subject’s data was obtained from the institutional database with consent from the administrations and the patients. None of the patients had any head and neck pathology. Materials and methods: The subject’s data was obtained from the institutional database with consent from the administrations and the patients. None of the patients had any head and neck pathology. Computed tomography (CT) of 100 Malay patients who underwent head and neck CT were analysed, based on our inclusion and exclusion criteria. Measurements were taken using a specialised viewer software where 55 points were measured, followed a grid with 10mm distance using external occipital protuberance (EOP) as the reference point. Results: There were 57 males and 43 females of Malay ethnicity with a mean age of 36.7 years analysed in this study. The EOP was the thickest bone of the occiput which measured 16.15mm. There was an area of at least 8mm thickness up to 20mm on either side of the EOP, and at level 10mm inferior to the EOP. There is thickness of at least 8mm, up to 30mm inferior to the EOP at the midline. The males have significantly thicker bone especially along the midline compared to females. Conclusion: Screws of at least 8mm can be safely inserted in the Malay population at 20mm on either side of the EOP at the level 10mm inferior to the EOP and up to 30mm inferior to the EOP at the midline.

Differences of Structural Plasticity between Hemispheres during Rehabilitation for Subacute Stroke / 中国康复理论与实践

Objective:To explore the differences in plasticity mechanism of cortical structure between hemispheres during rehabilitation for stroke patients at subacute stage. Methods:From October 20, 2018 to February 1, 2020, 22 patients with first-onset subcortical ischemic stroke completed the assessments of MRI and clinical evaluation at admission, and after one and two months of rehabilitation. Cortical surface area, thickness, and volume were measured to evaluate cortical structure plasticity. Two-way repeated measures analyses of variance were implemented to estimate dynamic cortical morphology changes and differences between hemispheres. Results:A significant time effect occurred between admission and after one month of rehabilitation for both hemispheres. Cortical surface area, thickness and volume for most regions in both hemispheres gradually decreased, while parahippocampal gyrus thickness and volume increased. The surface area and volume of postcentral gyrus was significant between both hemispheres (F > 4.305, P < 0.05), in which ipsilesional hemisphere was lower than contralesional hemisphere. The reduction of the thickness (r = -0.474, P = 0.026) and volume (r = -0.432, P = 0.044) of postcentral gyrus in ipsilesional hemisphere was negatively correlated with the recovery rate of motor function. Conclusion:There are differences in cortical structure plasticity during stroke rehabilitation between hemispheres. Cortical morphology markedly changes in the first two months poststroke. The greater the reduction in thickness and volume of postcentral gyrus in ipsilesional hemisphere is, the worse the recovery of motor function may be.

Cortical and Subcortical Grey Matter Abnormalities in White Matter Hyperintensities and Subsequent Cognitive Impairment / 神经科学通报·英文版

Grey matter (GM) alterations may contribute to cognitive decline in individuals with white matter hyperintensities (WMH) but no consensus has yet emerged. Here, we investigated cortical thickness and grey matter volume in 23 WMH patients with mild cognitive impairment (WMH-MCI), 43 WMH patients without cognitive impairment, and 55 healthy controls. Both WMH groups showed GM atrophy in the bilateral thalamus, fronto-insular cortices, and several parietal-temporal regions, and the WMH-MCI group showed more extensive and severe GM atrophy. The GM atrophy in the thalamus and fronto-insular cortices was associated with cognitive decline in the WMH-MCI patients and may mediate the relationship between WMH and cognition in WMH patients. Furthermore, the main results were well replicated in an independent dataset from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative database and in other control analyses. These comprehensive results provide robust evidence of specific GM alterations underlying WMH and subsequent cognitive impairment.

A Systematic Characterization of Structural Brain Changes in Schizophrenia / 神经科学通报·英文版

A systematic characterization of the similarities and differences among different methods for detecting structural brain abnormalities in schizophrenia, such as voxel-based morphometry (VBM), tensor-based morphometry (TBM), and projection-based thickness (PBT), is important for understanding the brain pathology in schizophrenia and for developing effective biomarkers for a diagnosis of schizophrenia. However, such studies are still lacking. Here, we performed VBM, TBM, and PBT analyses on T1-weighted brain MR images acquired from 116 patients with schizophrenia and 116 healthy controls. We found that, although all methods detected wide-spread structural changes, different methods captured different information - only 10.35% of the grey matter changes in cortex were detected by all three methods, and VBM only detected 11.36% of the white matter changes detected by TBM. Further, pattern classification between patients and controls revealed that combining different measures improved the classification accuracy (81.9%), indicating that fusion of different structural measures serves as a better neuroimaging marker for the objective diagnosis of schizophrenia.

A Systematic Characterization of Structural Brain Changes in Schizophrenia / 神经科学通报·英文版

A systematic characterization of the similarities and differences among different methods for detecting structural brain abnormalities in schizophrenia, such as voxel-based morphometry (VBM), tensor-based morphometry (TBM), and projection-based thickness (PBT), is important for understanding the brain pathology in schizophrenia and for developing effective biomarkers for a diagnosis of schizophrenia. However, such studies are still lacking. Here, we performed VBM, TBM, and PBT analyses on T1-weighted brain MR images acquired from 116 patients with schizophrenia and 116 healthy controls. We found that, although all methods detected wide-spread structural changes, different methods captured different information - only 10.35% of the grey matter changes in cortex were detected by all three methods, and VBM only detected 11.36% of the white matter changes detected by TBM. Further, pattern classification between patients and controls revealed that combining different measures improved the classification accuracy (81.9%), indicating that fusion of different structural measures serves as a better neuroimaging marker for the objective diagnosis of schizophrenia.

Age-Related Reduction in Cortical Thickness in First-Episode Treatment-Naïve Patients with Schizophrenia / 神经科学通报·英文版

Substantial evidence supports the neurodevelopmental hypothesis of schizophrenia. Meanwhile, progressive neurodegenerative processes have also been reported, leading to the hypothesis that neurodegeneration is a characteristic component in the neuropathology of schizophrenia. However, a major challenge for the neurodegenerative hypothesis is that antipsychotic drugs used by patients have profound impact on brain structures. To clarify this potential confounding factor, we measured the cortical thickness across the whole brain using high-resolution T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging in 145 first-episode and treatment-naïve patients with schizophrenia and 147 healthy controls. The results showed that, in the patient group, the frontal, temporal, parietal, and cingulate gyri displayed a significant age-related reduction of cortical thickness. In the control group, age-related cortical thickness reduction was mostly located in the frontal, temporal, and cingulate gyri, albeit to a lesser extent. Importantly, relative to healthy controls, patients exhibited a significantly smaller age-related cortical thickness in the anterior cingulate, inferior temporal, and insular gyri in the right hemisphere. These results provide evidence supporting the existence of neurodegenerative processes in schizophrenia and suggest that these processes already occur in the early stage of the illness.

Clinical significance of renal cortical thickness in patients with chronic kidney disease

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the correlations between laboratory findings and ultrasonographic measurements of renal length and cortical thickness in patients receiving follow-up for chronic kidney disease (CKD). METHODS: A total of 41 CKD patients (18 males and 23 females; mean age, 65.2 years; range, 42 to 85 years) with a low glomerular filtration rate who did not require renal replacement therapy were included in this prospective study. Patients were followed up with laboratory assays at bimonthly intervals and with ultrasonography performed twice a year. Renal cortical thickness, renal length, and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) values were compared using the paired-samples t test. Additionally, Pearson correlation analysis was conducted between renal length and cortical thickness measurements and eGFR values to assess kidney function. RESULTS: At the beginning of the study and after 24 months, mean eGFR values of the 41 patients were 35.92 mL/min and 28.38 mL/min, respectively. The mean renal length was 91.29 mm at the beginning of the study and 90.24 mm at the end of the study. The mean cortical thickness was 5.76±2.05 mm at the beginning of the study and 5.28±1.99 mm at the end of the study. A statistically significant positive association was found between eGFR and mean renal length (r=0.66, P < 0.01) and between eGFR and mean cortical thickness (r=0.85, P < 0.01), with the latter being more prominent. CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that ultrasonographic cortical thickness measurements may be an important imaging technique in the follow-up care of patients with CKD.

Changes in the Volume and Cortical Thickness of the Specific Regions of Cerebellum of Patients with Major Depressive Disorder

OBJECTIVES: A growing body of evidence has suggested that morphologic changes in cerebellum may be implicated with pathophysiology of major depressive disorder (MDD). The aim of this study is to investigate a difference in the volume and cortical thickness of the specific region of cerebellum between patients with MDD and healthy controls (HC). METHODS: A total of 127 patients with MDD and 105 HC participated in this study and underwent T1-weighted structural magnetic resonance imaging. We analyzed volume and cortical thickness of each twelve cerebellum regions divided by left and right and the volume and cortical thickness of the whole cerebellum from T1-weigted image of participants. One-way analysis of covariance was used to investigate the volume and cortical thickness difference of total and specific regions between two groups adjusting for age, gender, medication, and total intracranial cavity volume. RESULTS: We found that the patients with MDD had significantly greater volume in the left cerebellum lobule III region [false discovery rate (FDR)-corrected p = 0.034] compared to HC. Also, our findings indicate that cortical thickness of left lobule VIIB (FDR-corrected p = 0.032) and lobule VIIIB (FDR-corrected p = 0.032) are significantly thinner in the patients with MDD compared with the HC. No significant volume and cortical thickness differences were observed in other sub-regions of the cerebellum. The volumes and cortical thickness of whole cerebellum between patients with MDD and HC did not differ significantly. CONCLUSIONS: We observed the region-specific volume and cortical thickness difference in cerebellum between the patients with MDD and HC. The results of our study implicate that the information about structural alterations in cerebellum with further replicative studies might provide a stepping stone toward a specific marker to diagnose MDD.

Neuroanatomical correlates of depressive symptoms in newly diagnosed Parkinson’s disease patients

@#Objective: Depression is the most frequent neuropsychiatric manifestation in Parkinson’s disease (PD). Although evidence suggests that depression in PD is related to the degenerative process that underlies the disease, a complete understanding of neural substrates has yet to be achieved. To investigate the neuroanatomical changes underlying depression in PD, we conducted a surface-based morphometry (SBM) study in de novo, drug-naïve Parkinson’s disease patients with and without depression. Methods: We studied thirty-one patients with idiopathic, de novo, drug-naïve PD. Patient clinical characteristics, including age, sex, disease duration, Hoehn and Yahr stage, UPDRS part III, and brief neuropsychological testing, were assessed. Sixteen Parkinson’s disease patients with depression (PD-D) were defined as patients with abnormal geriatric depressions scales (> 17 points), and fifteen patients had Parkinson’s disease without depression (PD-ND). The SBM analysis of cortical thickness was performed to determine the difference between the PD-D and PD-ND groups. Results: There were no differences in terms of clinical characteristics between the PD-D and PD-ND groups, but the level of education in the PD-ND was higher than that in the PD-D. The cortical thickness was significantly decreased in the left anterior cingulate and left precentral gyrus in the PD-D group compared to the PD-ND group. Conclusion: Depression in Parkinson’s disease is associated with the left anterior cingulate and left precentral gyrus region reduced cortical thickness

Reduction of prefrontal thickness in military police officers with post-traumatic stress disorder

Abstract Background Brain-imaging studies in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have consistently revealed alterations in brain structure and function and this is correlated to symptomatology. However, few studies have investigated the role of biomarkers in PTSD some specific groups, as police officers. Objective To evaluate prefrontal and limbic volumes, and cortical thickness of police officers exposed to trauma during work who developed post-traumatic stress disorder, resilient matched controls (without PTSD), and compared to healthy civilians. Methods Prefrontal and limbic volumes, and cortical thickness of 12 police officers with PTSD, 12 resilient police officers, and 12 healthy civilians who underwent brain MRI were analyzed. Results Differences in limbic structures volume were not significative after Bonferroni correction. A significant reduction in cortical thickness on right rostral cingulate, right and left middle frontal gyrus, left superior frontal, left lingual, calcarine and cuneus were observed in PTSD group in comparison to controls was observed. Discussion Although preliminary, our results suggested not only the association between cortical thickness and PTSD, but also indicated that patients and controls have anatomical differences.

Death due to fracture of thin calvarial bones after a fall: A forensic approach / 中华创伤杂志(英文版)

A 45-year-old male was autopsied. He had fallen backwards from a two-stairs height to the ground and passed away. A skull fracture was detected in the left occipital area, extending up to the left side of the skull base. The patient's death occurred due to the very low thickness of the calvarial bones, which led to the aforementioned fracture, and in turn resulted in subarachnoid hemorrhage and death. The cortical thickness was measured and compared with average values at standardized points. Uniform bone thinning was confirmed rather than localized. Calvarial thinning may result from various conditions. In the present case study, however, the exact mechanism which led to the low thickness of the calvarial bones of the patient is undetermined. Death due to the susceptible structure and fracture of calvarial bones has rarely been reported throughout relevant literature.

Cortical Thickness of Resting State Networks in the Brain of Male Patients with Alcohol Dependence

OBJECTIVES: It is well known that problem drinking is associated with alterations of brain structures and functions. Brain functions related to alcohol consumption can be determined by the resting state functional connectivity in various resting state networks (RSNs). This study aims to ascertain the alcohol effect on the structures forming predetermined RSNs by assessing their cortical thickness. METHODS: Twenty-six abstinent male patients with alcohol dependence and the same number of age-matched healthy control were recruited from an inpatient mental hospital and community. All participants underwent a 3T MRI scan. Averaged cortical thickness of areas constituting 7 RSNs were determined by using FreeSurfer with Yeo atlas derived from cortical parcellation estimated by intrinsic functional connectivity. RESULTS: There were significant group differences of mean cortical thicknesses (Cohen's d, corrected p) in ventral attention (1.01, < 0.01), dorsal attention (0.93, 0.01), somatomotor (0.90, 0.01), and visual (0.88, 0.02) networks. We could not find significant group differences in the default mode network. There were also significant group differences of gray matter volumes corrected by head size across the all networks. However, there were no group differences of surface area in each network. CONCLUSIONS: There are differences in degree and pattern of structural recovery after abstinence across areas forming RSNs. Considering the previous observation that group differences of functional connectivity were significant only in networks related to taskpositive networks such as dorsal attention and cognitive control networks, we can explain recovery pattern of cognition and emotion related to the default mode network and the mechanisms for craving and relapse associated with task-positive networks.

Relationship between preoperative renal cortical thickness and glomerular filtration rate before and after minimally invasive surgery in patients with unilateral upper urinary tract obstruction / 中国内镜杂志

Objective To investigate the relationship between preoperative renal cortical thickness and glomerular filtration rate (GFR) before and after minimally invasive surgery in patients with unilateral upper urinary tract obstruction. Methods 63 patients with upper urinary tract obstruction from July 2015 to June 2016 were enrolled in the study, including 34 males and 29 females, age ranged from 22 to 73 years old (52.21 ± 11.56). Their operation methods included 24 cases of ureteroscopic lithotripsy and lithotomy, 21 cases with one-stage percutaneous nephrostomy + two-stage percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL), 18 cases of PCNL. The abdominal enhanced CT and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) were measured to RCT and GFR. Then all cases were divided into group A (moderate renal impairment, 15.0 ml/min ≤ GFR < 30 ml/min), group B (severe renal damage, 7.5 ml/min ≤ GFR <15.0 ml/min) and group C (extremely severe renal injury, GFR < 7.5 ml/min) according to preoperative renal GFR, and changes of GFR before and after surgery were compared among three groups. Simple linear correlation analysis was used to analyze the correlation between preoperative RCT and other indexes in group A and B. Results 9 patients were not measured RCT because of serious hydronephrosis, 54 patients included 20 cases of RCT >10 mm, 23 cases of 5 ～ 7 mm and 11 cases of <5 mm, and the average value was (10.75 ± 4.91) mm. The preoperative RCT in group A was significantly higher than that in group B (P < 0.05). GFR at 1 and 9 months after operation in three groups were significantly higher than that before operation in the same group (P < 0.05). GFR at 1 and 9 months after operation in group A were significantly higher than that the other two groups, and GFR at 9 months after operation in group B was significantly higher than that in group C (P < 0.05), but there were no significant differences in GFR at 1 month after operation between group B and C (P > 0.05). GFR recovery value at 1 month after operation in group B was significantly lower than that in other two groups (P < 0.05), but there were no significant differences in GFR at 9 months after operation among three groups (P > 0.05). Preoperative RCT was positively correlated with preoperative GFR (r = 0.613), GFR at 1 month after operation (r = 0.697) and the recovery value (r = 0.552), GFR at 9 months after operation ((r = 0.589) and recovery values (r = 0.488), and the differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Conclusion Removal of upper urinary tract obstruction could recover the renal function to varying degrees, even for patients with extremely severe renal injury, who could retrieve their kidney. Preoperative RCT could be helpful in judging the renal function during operation, especially for the postoperative recovery of renal function.

Alternations in cortical thickness and functional connectivity in patients with generalized anxiety disorder / 中华行为医学与脑科学杂志

Objective To investigate the changes of cortical thickness and relative resting state functional connectivity in patients with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).Methods The present study analyzed structural and eyes-open resting state functional MRI were performed in 21 patients with GAD and 22 matched healthy controls.Cortical thickness was estimated with FreeSurfer.The structurally altered regions were defined as region of interest (ROI) to analyze functional connectivity (FC) using resting state functional MRI data by DPABI.Results Cortical thickness of patients with GAD were increased in right rostral middle frontal gyrus (rMFG;MNI:x =27.9,y =53.4,z =-11.1;size:241.93 mm2;FDR corrected,P ＜ 0.1) and right inferior temporal gyrus (IGT;MNI:x =49.7,y =-57.8,z =-8.7;size:138.93 mm2;FDR corrected,P＜0.1) compared with healthy controls.FC between right rMFG and right superior/middle occipital gyrus as well as well as FC between rMFG and right precentral gyrus showed decreased in patients with GAD compared with healthy controls(AlphaSim corrected,P＜0.05).FC between right rMFG and right angular gyrus showed increased in patients with GAD compared with healthy control (AlphaSim corrected,P＜0.05).Conclusion The rMFG may play an important role in the pathophysiology of GAD,which can be used as an stimuli target in physicotherapeutics to improve anxiety symptoms.

Changes of cortical thickness and cortical surface area in patients with bipolar depression / 中华行为医学与脑科学杂志

Objective To investigate the changes of cortical thickness and surface area in patients with bipolar depression(BD),and to explore the relationship between abnormal changes in gray matter and clinical symptoms.Methods 28 BD patients and 28 healthy controls underwent T1-weighted MRI.The Freesurfer software was used to process the T1 images,which used a set of automated sequences to analyze cortical thickness and surface area on 66 regions (33 regions of each hemisphere),and the correlation with clinical features was also calculated.Results Compared with controls,BD patients showed thinner cortical thickness in left medial orbitofrontal cortex((2.40±0.12) mm vs (2.55 ±0.18) mm,P=1.2× 10-3) and left rostral anterior cingulate((2.66±0.21) mm vs (2.88±0.27) mm,P=3.1 × 10-4),and smaller area of left cuneus((1 443.13± 131.00) mm2vs (6 634.70±600.16) mm2,P=2.7× 10-4) and right superior frontal gyrus ((6 634.70±600.16) mm2vs (7 300.50±653.39) mm2,P=1.3× 10-3).In addition,the negatively correlation was found between the cortical area of left cuneus and effective illness duration (r=-0.471,P=0.018),and the cortical thickness in left rostral anterior cingulate and total score of HAMD-17(17-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression) (r=-0.508,P=0.009).Conclusion There are abnormal altertion of cortical thickness and cortical areas of emotional circuit in bipolar depression,but the brain areas are not completely overlapping.Correlation analysis suggests that cortical thickness and area is related to different clinical features.

Analysis of cortical thickness in children with concomitant strabismus / 实用放射学杂志

Objective To analyse the changes of cerebral cortical thickness and explore the connectivity of cortical thickness and the clinical syndrome of concomitant strabismus using high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging.Methods Participants were 26 children with primary strabismus and 28 healthy children strictly matched for sex, age, education and socioeconomic level.By using Freesurfer software, the whole-brain-based analysis was perfomrmed to compare the cortical thickness between the two groups.Results Compared with the healthy control group the children with strabismus were found that the cerebral cortex became thinner, including these brain regions related with stereovision,advanced visual-attention,attention and executive control function,as well as brain areas in insula and cingulate circuit.Conclusion Concomitant strabismus in children are not only caused by pathological changes of extraocular muscles,but anatomical changes of the central nervous system, especially the brain areas involved in the advanced visual processing related with visual-motor and visual-attention, and the advanced cognitive brain regions associated with attention and executive control, as well as the anatomical changes in insula and cingulate cortex circuit, which can explain the clinical syndrome of children with concomitant strabismus.

Reduced Cortical Thickness in the Temporal Pole, Insula, and Pars Triangularis in Patients with Panic Disorder

PURPOSE: Recent neuroimaging findings have revealed that paralimbic and prefrontal regions are involved in panic disorder (PD). However, no imaging studies have compared differences in cortical thickness between patients with PD and healthy control (HC) subjects. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty-seven right-handed patients with PD who met the diagnostic criteria in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-4th edition-text revision, and 30 HC subjects were enrolled. We used the FreeSurfer software package for estimating the cortical thickness of regions of interest, including the temporal pole, insula, and pars triangularis (mid-ventrolateral prefrontal cortex). RESULTS: Cortical thickness of the temporal pole (p=0.033, right), insula (p=0.017, left), and pars triangularis (p=0.008, left; p=0.025, right) in patients with PD was significantly lower, compared with HC subjects (Benjamini-Hochberg false discovery rate correction). Exploratory analysis revealed a significant negative correlation between the cortical thickness of the right temporal pole and Beck Depression Inventory scores (r=-0.333, p=0.027) in patients with PD and positive correlations between the cortical thickness of the left pars triangularis and Panic Disorder Severity Scale (r=0.429, p=0.004), Anxiety Sensitivity Index-Revised (r=0.380, p=0.011), and Beck Anxiety Inventory (r=0.421, p=0.004) scores using Pearson's correlation. CONCLUSION: Ours study is the first to demonstrate cortical thickness reduction in the temporal pole, insula, and pars triangularis in patients with PD, compared with the HC subjects. These findings suggest that reduced cortical thickness could play an important role in the pathophysiology of PD.