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Updated: May 6, 2026
Diffusion Tensor Magnetic Resonance Imaging in the Analysis of Neurodegenerative Diseases
Published on: July 28, 2013
Examination of cognitive fatigue in multiple sclerosis using functional magnetic resonance imaging and diffusion
Helen M Genova1, Venkateswaran Rajagopalan, John Deluca
1Neuropsychology and Neuroscience Laboratory, Kessler Foundation Research Center, West Orange, New Jersey, United States of America ; Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Rutgers, New Jersey Medical School, Newark, New Jersey, United States of America.
Abstract:
The present study investigated the neural correlates of cognitive fatigue in Multiple Sclerosis (MS), looking specifically at the relationship between self-reported fatigue and objective measures of cognitive fatigue. In Experiment 1, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to examine where in the brain BOLD activity covaried with "state" fatigue, assessed during performance of a task designed to induce cognitive fatigue while in the scanner. In Experiment 2, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) was used to examine where in the brain white matter damage correlated with increased "trait" fatigue in individuals with MS, assessed by the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) completed outside the scanning session. During the cognitively fatiguing task, the MS group had increased brain activity associated with fatigue in the caudate as compared with HCs. DTI findings revealed that reduced fractional anisotropy in the anterior internal capsule was associated with increased self-reported fatigue on the FSS. Results are discussed in terms of identifying a "fatigue-network" in MS.
