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Comprehensive Autopsy Program for Individuals with Multiple Sclerosis
Published on: July 19, 2019
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Contribution of normal aging to brain atrophy in MS
Christina J Azevedo1, Steven Y Cen1, Amir Jaberzadeh1
1From the Department of Neurology (C.J.A., S.Y.C., A.J., L.Z., D.P.), University of Southern California, Los Angeles; and Department of Neurology (S.L.H.), University of California, San Francisco.
Neurology(R) Neuroimmunology & Neuroinflammation
|April 25, 2020
Summary
Brain atrophy in multiple sclerosis (MS) varies with age. While normal aging accelerates, MS-specific atrophy slows in key regions like the thalamus, impacting our understanding of MS progression.
Area of Science:
- Neuroimaging
- Neurology
- Biostatistics
Background:
- Multiple sclerosis (MS) is characterized by brain atrophy, which can be distinct from normal aging.
- Understanding the interplay between aging and MS-related neurodegeneration is crucial for disease management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify brain regions most affected by MS-specific atrophy.
- To determine how normal aging and MS-specific atrophy change over time in these regions.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of 3D T1-weighted MRI scans from 520 MS patients and 130 controls over 5 years.
- Utilized FreeSurfer and Structural Image Evaluation Using Normalization of Atrophy (SIENA) to quantify regional brain atrophy rates.
- Mixed-effects models assessed changes, with age as a modifier in top-ranked atrophy regions.
Main Results:
- Gray matter structures were top-ranked for MS-specific atrophy.
- In SIENA analysis, normal aging atrophy increased with age (e.g., -0.11%/decade), while MS-specific atrophy decreased (e.g., 0.09%/decade).
- Thalamic atrophy showed similar trends: normal aging increased, MS-specific atrophy decreased with age. Putamen and caudate atrophy did not vary significantly with age.
Conclusions:
- Normal aging contributes increasingly to atrophy in specific regions (SIENA, thalamus) with advancing age.
- MS-specific atrophy appears to decelerate in these regions over time.
- These findings offer insights into the biological mechanisms of brain atrophy in MS.
