title: Structural brain abnormalities in cervical dystonia.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Idiopathic cervical dystonia is characterized by involuntary spasms, tremors or jerks. It is not restricted to a disturbance in the basal ganglia system because non-conventional voxel-based MRI morphometry (VBM) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) have detected numerous regional changes in the brains of patients.In this study scans of 24 patients with cervical dystonia and 24 age-and sex-matched controls were analysed using VBM, DTI and magnetization transfer imaging (MTI) using a voxel-based approach and a region-of-interest analysis. Results were correlated with UDRS, TWSTRS and disease duration.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We found structural alterations in the basal ganglia; thalamus; motor cortex; premotor cortex; frontal, temporal and parietal cortices; visual system; cerebellum and brainstem of the patients with dystonia.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Cervical dystonia is a multisystem disease involving several networks such as the motor, sensory and visual systems.
authors.affiliation: Hans-Berger Department of Neurology, Jena University Hospital, Erlanger Allee 101, 07747 Jena, Germany. tino.prell@med.uni-jena.de.
authors.forename: Tino
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Prell
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Peschel
authors.forename: Bernadette
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Köhler
authors.forename: Martin H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Bokemeyer
authors.forename: Reinhard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dengler
authors.forename: Albrecht
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Günther
authors.forename: Julian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Grosskreutz
mesh_terms: D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology*; D056324:Diffusion Tensor Imaging; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014103:Torticollis / Q000473:pathology*