title: Striatofrontal Deafferentiation in MSA-P: Evaluation with [18F]FDG Brain PET.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Although cognitive impairment is not a consistent feature of multiple system atrophy (MSA), increasing evidence suggests that cognitive impairment is common in MSA with predominant parkinsonism (MSA-P). It is assumed that the cognitive impairment in MSA-P is caused by the striatal dysfunction and disruption of striatofrontal connections. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between regional glucose metabolism in the frontal cortex and striatum in patients with MSA-P using [18F]FDG brain PET.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-nine patients with MSA-P and 28 healthy controls underwent [18F]FDG brain PET scan. The [18F]FDG brain PET images were semiquantitatively analyzed on the basis of a template in standard space. The regional glucose metabolism of the cerebral cortex and striatum were compared between MSA-P and healthy control groups. The correlations between age, symptom duration, H&Y stage, UPDRS III score, MMSE score, and glucose metabolism in the cerebellum and striatum to glucose metabolism in the frontal cortex were evaluated by multivariate analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The glucose metabolism in the frontal cortex and striatum in MSA-P patients were significantly lower than those in healthy controls. Glucose metabolism in the striatum was the most powerful determinant of glucose metabolism in the frontal cortex in MSA-P. Only age and glucose metabolism in the cerebellum were independent variables affecting the glucose metabolism in the frontal cortex in healthy controls.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The decrease in frontal glucose metabolism in MSA-P is related to the decrease in striatal glucose metabolism. This result provided evidence of striatofrontal deafferentiation in patients with MSA-P.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nuclear Medicine, Keimyung University, School of Medicine, Daegu, Korea.
authors.forename: Hae Won
authors.initials: HW
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Nuclear Medicine, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Minyoung
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.affiliation: Department of Nuclear Medicine, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Jungsu S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.affiliation: Department of Nuclear Medicine, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Seung Jun
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.affiliation: Department of Nuclear Medicine, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Sang Ju
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Sun Ju
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Chung
authors.affiliation: Department of Nuclear Medicine, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Jae Seung
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D001921:Brain / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D001931:Brain Mapping / Q000379:methods; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D003342:Corpus Striatum / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18 / Q000378:metabolism*; D005947:Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019578:Multiple System Atrophy / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology*; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography / Q000379:methods*; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; D005947:Glucose