Associations between Proprioceptive Neural Pathway Structural Connectivity and Balance in People with Multiple...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Mobility and balance impairments are common in multiple sclerosis (MS), significantly impacting daily life.
• Proprioceptive deficits are increasingly recognized as a primary cause of balance issues in early-stage MS.
• Understanding the neural basis of these balance disturbances is crucial for developing effective rehabilitation strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To map the cortical proprioceptive pathway in vivo using diffusion-weighted imaging.
• To investigate the relationship between the white matter integrity of proprioceptive pathways and balance performance in people with MS (PwMS).

Main Methods:

• Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) was used to visualize and assess the microstructural integrity of the cortical proprioceptive pathway.
• Clinical and behavioral balance tasks were administered to evaluate balance control.
• Comparisons were made between PwMS and age-matched healthy controls (HC).

Main Results:

• PwMS exhibited poorer performance on proprioceptive-based balance tasks compared to HC.
• Reduced white matter microstructural integrity was observed in the cortical proprioceptive tracts of PwMS.
• Right hemisphere proprioceptive pathway integrity correlated with balance control in both PwMS and HC, but this association was lost for overall balance in PwMS.

Conclusions:

• The study confirms reduced proprioceptive pathway integrity and impaired balance in PwMS.
• Findings suggest that balance control in PwMS may rely more heavily on cerebellar, vestibular, or visual systems rather than solely on the compromised proprioceptive pathway.