Cortical metabolism in posterolateral thalamic stroke: PET study.
In 8 patients with small unilateral posterolateral thalamic (or, in one case, thalamocapsular) stroke (infarction or hemorrhage) selected on strict clinical (pure hemisomatosensory deficit without hemiparesis, visual field defect or neuropsychological impairment) and MRI criteria, we studied cortical energy metabolism using positron emission tomography with the 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose or the 15O-oxygen method. We found no significant ipsi- or contra-lateral metabolic depression either in the whole cortical mantle or in the sensorimotor cortex. These results support the hypothesis that location of thalamic stroke is a major determinant of the ipsilateral cortical hypometabolism characteristic of cognitively impaired patients with thalamic lesions and further emphasize the influence of the "non-specific" thalamocortical system on resting cortical metabolism. The lack of sensorimotor cortex hypometabolism in our patients suffering from hemidysesthesia and/or -hyperpathia also suggests that cortical metabolism is unaltered in thalamic pain.
Chabriat
H
H
Biology Department, Service Hospitalier Frédéric Joliot, CEA, Caen, France.
Pappata
S
S
Levasseur
M
M
Fiorelli
M
M
Tran Dinh
S
S
Baron
J C
JC
D000368:Aged; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D002561:Cerebrovascular Disorders / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D004292:Dominance, Cerebral / Q000502:physiology; D004734:Energy Metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009460:Neurologic Examination; D010101:Oxygen Consumption / Q000502:physiology; D012016:Reference Values; D013788:Thalamus / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D014055:Tomography, Emission-Computed
D001786:Blood Glucose