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Cortical thinning related to periventricular and deep white matter hyperintensities

Sang Won Seo1, Jong-Min Lee, Kiho Im

  • 1Department of Neurology, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Samsung Medical Center, Seoul, Korea.

Neurobiology of Aging
|February 15, 2011
PubMed

Insights

Periventricular white matter hyperintensities (PWMH) are linked to frontal lobe thinning and executive dysfunction in dementia and MCI patients. Deep white matter hyperintensities (DWMH) showed minimal association with cognitive decline.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroimaging
  • Neurology
  • Cognitive Science

Background:

  • White matter hyperintensities (WMH) are associated with cognitive decline in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia.
  • Periventricular WMH (PWMH) and deep WMH (DWMH) may differentially impact cognitive function.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine the relationship between PWMH and DWMH and the topography of cortical thinning.
  • To investigate the association between WMH, cortical thinning, and cognitive impairments in patients with dementia and MCI.

Main Methods:

  • Surface-based methods were used to measure cortical thickness in 226 patients with dementia and 135 patients with MCI.
  • The study analyzed the topographical distribution of cortical thinning related to PWMH and DWMH.

Main Results:

  • Cortical thinning associated with WMH was observed in frontal and perisylvian regions, mirroring PWMH distribution.
  • PWMH, unlike DWMH, were significantly associated with frontal cortical thinning and executive dysfunction.
  • Both PWMH and frontal thinning independently predicted executive dysfunction.

Conclusions:

  • PWMH are associated with frontal cortical thinning, which in turn contributes to executive dysfunction.
  • The findings highlight the distinct roles of PWMH and DWMH in the neurobiology of cognitive decline.

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