Structural and functional brain alterations in laryngeal dystonia: A coordinate-based activation likelihood...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Neurology
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Laryngeal dystonia (LD) is a focal dystonia impacting speech.
• Previous neuroimaging studies show varied results, hindering clinical application.
• Understanding consistent neural alterations in LD is crucial for developing targeted therapies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically identify and meta-analyze structural and functional brain abnormalities in laryngeal dystonia.
• To consolidate neuroimaging findings for a clearer understanding of LD's neural basis.
• To provide evidence for future therapeutic targets in laryngeal dystonia.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature search for stereotactic coordinates of abnormalities in LD patients versus controls.
• Coordinate-based activation likelihood estimation (ALE) meta-analysis.
• Inclusion of 21 functional and structural neuroimaging studies (521 LD patients, 448 controls).

Main Results:

• Meta-analysis identified significant abnormalities in bilateral primary motor cortices.
• Abnormalities were also found in the left inferior parietal lobule, left striatum, right insula, and supplementary motor area.
• These findings highlight a distributed neural network dysfunction in LD.

Conclusions:

• Laryngeal dystonia is characterized by widespread neural network abnormalities.
• The identified brain regions serve as key targets for future research and therapeutic interventions.
• This meta-analysis strengthens the view of dystonia as a disorder of neural networks.