title: MRI and neuropsychological improvement in Huntington disease following ethyl-EPA treatment.
abstract: A 6-month randomized, placebo-controlled pilot study of the ethyl-ester of eicosapentaenoic acid (ethyl-EPA) was carried out in seven in-patients with advanced (stage III) Huntington's disease (three on ethyl-EPA, four on placebo; no significant difference in age or sex between the groups). After 6 months all the patients treated with ethyl-EPA improved on the orofacial component of the Unified Huntington's Disease Rating Scale while all the patients on placebo deteriorated on this scale (p < 0.03). Following subvoxel registration of follow-up 3D MRI brain scans with baseline scans, subtraction images showed that while the placebo was associated with progressive cerebral atrophy, the ethyl-EPA was associated with a reverse process. We conclude that treatment with ethyl-EPA is associated with beneficial motor and MRI changes.
authors.affiliation: Magnetic Resonance Unit, MRC Clinical Sciences Centre, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College, Hammersmith Hospital, London UK.
authors.forename: Basant K
authors.initials: BK
authors.lastname: Puri
authors.forename: Graeme M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Bydder
authors.forename: Serena J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Counsell
authors.forename: Bryan J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Corridan
authors.forename: Alexandra J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Richardson
authors.forename: Joseph V
authors.initials: JV
authors.lastname: Hajnal
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Appel
authors.forename: Heather M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Mckee
authors.forename: Krishna S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Vaddadi
authors.forename: David F
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: Horrobin
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001284:Atrophy; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D004409:Dyskinesia, Drug-Induced / Q000209:etiology; D015118:Eicosapentaenoic Acid / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D006816:Huntington Disease / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000523:psychology*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013382:Subtraction Technique
chemical_list: C035276:eicosapentaenoic acid ethyl ester; D015118:Eicosapentaenoic Acid