title: New developments of brain imaging for Parkinson's disease and related disorders.
abstract: Parkinson's disease (PD) and related disorders are subcortical degenerations targeting the nigrostriatal dopaminergic system and basal ganglia. Traditionally, MRI has been used to detect structural and positron emission tomography and single emission computed tomography functional neurochemical and metabolic changes associated with these disorders. Recently, advances in diffusion-weighted MRI, ultrasonography, and radiotracer-based imaging have yielded greater sensitivity for revealing structural change and allowed detection of changes in brain dopamine levels after levodopa and during behavioral tasks. This review focuses on these recent advances in neuroimaging technology and their use for the diagnosis and assessment of PD and other parkinsonian disorders.
authors.affiliation: MRC Clinical Sciences Centre and Division of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Imperial College, Hammersmith Hospital, London, United Kingdom. paola.piccini@csc.mrc.ac.uk
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Piccini
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Brooks
mesh_terms: D001812:Blood-Brain Barrier / Q000473:pathology; D001931:Brain Mapping; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D017628:Microglia / Q000473:pathology; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology*; D020734:Parkinsonian Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology*