Cerebellar atrophy--a comparative microscopic study

The cerebellum is required for the coordination of fine movement. In health, it provides corrections during motion which are the basis for precision and accuracy, and it is critically involved in motor learning and reflex modification. Disease of the cerebellum or its connections leads to incoordination. The study puts forth the morphometric study of cerebellum cortex and of the modifications that occur at this level during cerebellar atrophy. Our research used routine histological methods, but also special methods, adequate to the studied cerebellar cortex (silver impregnation), in order to observe the characteristic structures of the organ. We used comparative morphometric methods in order to gather data about the structural changes that occur in the cerebellar cortex during cerebellar atrophy. In order to analyze the histological modifications we determined the following parameters: thickness of the cerebellar cortex--is a derived feature appropriate for elongated or thin structures, area fraction of the molecular layer in the cerebellar cortex, number of Purkinje neurons per microscopic field and area fraction of the blood vessels per microscopic field. The reference microscopic field has an area of 280.000 microm2. Observations and conclusions that arose from this study may represent a contribution to the theoretical knowledge on which the medical practice is based.