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Updated: Feb 7, 2026

Diffusion Tensor Magnetic Resonance Imaging in the Analysis of Neurodegenerative Diseases
Published on: July 28, 2013
Multiple Sclerosis Fatigue: A Longitudinal Structural MRI and Diffusion Tensor Imaging Study
K Yarraguntla1, N Seraji-Bozorgzad1, S Lichtman-Mikol1
1Sastry Foundation Advanced Imaging Laboratory, Wayne State School of Medicine, Detroit, MI.
Background And Purpose:
Previous cross-sectional studies have reported the involvement of thalamus, pallidum, superior cerebellar peduncle, temporal cortex, and fronto-parietal white matter in multiple sclerosis (MS)-related fatigue. However, the longitudinal imaging correlates of fatigue severity variation in MS remain unclear.
Methods:
Structural and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data were collected from 43 relapsing remitting MS (RRMS) patients with fatigue (Fatigue Severity Scale [FSS] range: 1-7). Subcortical nuclei volume using FreeSurfer and cortical diffusion indices using a cross-modality technique were measured at baseline and year 1.
Results:
The pallidal volume had significantly decreased (P = .002) by year 1, although the fatigue score variation was not significant. At year 1, the pallidal volume (P = .023) and fractional anisotropy (FA, P = .013) of right temporal cortex (RTC) correlated significantly with FSS.
Conclusions:
The pallidal volume and the FA-RTC may be used to evaluate longitudinal fatigue severity variation. Our study proposes new biomarkers to monitor fatigue severity in MS patients.
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