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DTI of the Visual Pathway - White Matter Tracts and Cerebral Lesions
Published on: August 26, 2014
Patterns of white matter diffusivity abnormalities in Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy: a tract-based spatial
Jacopo Milesi1, Maria A Rocca, Stefania Bianchi-Marzoli
1Neuroimaging Research Unit, Institute of Experimental Neurology, Division of Neuroscience, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy.
Journal of Neurology
|January 18, 2012
Summary
Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) causes vision loss by damaging the optic nerve. Diffusion tensor MRI shows white matter damage specifically in the visual pathways of LHON patients.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Ophthalmology
- Radiology
Background:
- Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) is a mitochondrial disorder causing optic nerve degeneration and vision loss.
- Retinal ganglion cell degeneration and optic nerve atrophy are key pathological features of LHON.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the topographical pattern of white matter (WM) tract damage in chronic LHON patients.
- To utilize diffusion tensor (DT) MRI and tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS) for assessing brain abnormalities.
Main Methods:
- Acquired brain dual-echo and DT MRI scans from 13 LHON patients and 25 controls.
- Performed TBSS analysis using FMRIB's Diffusion Toolbox.
- Conducted comprehensive neuro-ophthalmologic examinations, including perimetry and retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (PRNFL) measurements.
Main Results:
- LHON patients showed significantly reduced average and temporal PRNFL thicknesses.
- TBSS revealed diffusivity abnormalities (decreased FA, increased MD/RD) exclusively in the optic tracts and optic radiations (OR) of LHON patients.
- A significant correlation was found between optic tract FA and visual acuity in LHON patients.
Conclusions:
- DT MRI demonstrates microstructural alterations in the WM along the entire visual pathways in LHON patients, sparing other brain WM tracts.
- Damage to the optic radiations (OR) may result from trans-synaptic degeneration or local mitochondrial dysfunction.
- These findings highlight the specific impact of LHON on the visual system's white matter.
