A diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging for studying white matter changes in patients with mild cognitive impairment / 中华内科杂志

ABSTRACT

Objectives To measure the microstructural differences in the brains of participants with amnestic mild cognitive impairment ( aMCI) and compare with a control group using a magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging ( DTI) technique with fully automated image analysis tools. Methods A standardized clinical and neuropsychological evaluation was conducted on each subject 31 participants (15 participants with aMCI, 16 healthy elderly adults) underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based DTI. To control the effects of anatomical variation, the diffusion images of all participants were registered to standard anatomical space. Voxel-by-voxel comparisons showed significant regional reductions in white matter regions of fractional anisotropy (FA) in the participants with aMCI as compared with the controls. Results Significantly decreased FA value measurements (P<0. 001) were observed in the right frontal white matter in participants with aMCI. Moreover, there was a statistically significant difference between the patients with aMCI and controls in considering the small regions of bilateral superior frontal gyrus white matter (P < 0.001). Conclusions White matter damage of frontal lobe may play an important role in histopathologic changes associated with amnestic mild cognitive impairment