Journal of neuroimaging : official journal of the American Society of Neuroimaging
-
Both clinical autonomic dysfunction and involvement of autonomic nerves have been reported in a range of peripheral nerve disorders. We employed nerve ultrasound to assess the size of the vagus nerve in a serial study of patients with chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP) and Charcot-Marie-Tooth type 1B (CMT1B) as compared to healthy controls (HCs). We correlated these findings with involvement of the median and ulnar nerves. ⋯ The vagus nerve was involved to a similar extent as the median and ulnar nerves in CIDP and CMT1A, although no symptoms or signs of vagus nerve involvement were found. Further study should be performed to explore the clinical relevance of vagus nerve enlargement in these disorders.
-
Recent studies suggest that the autoantibodies against adrenergic/muscarinic receptors might be one of the causes and potential markers of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). The purpose of this study was to investigate the structural network changes related to autoantibody titers against adrenergic/muscarinic receptors in ME/CFS by performing a single-subject gray matter similarity-based structural network analysis. ⋯ Our findings suggest that β1 AdR-Ab and β2 AdR-Ab are potential markers of ME/CFS.
-
Cortical development is essential for children's neurocognition. In this study, we evaluated how variations in cortical morphometry in normal children are associated with outcome differences in multiple domains of cognition. ⋯ Cortical morphometry significantly correlated with neuropsychological function in healthy children; certain regions/features may serve as sensitive imaging markers.
-
Virtual reality (VR) is a promising tool for distraction analgesia. This study aims to compare brain perfusion patterns while patients were undergoing burn wound care in two conditions-VR distraction and control (NoVR). ⋯ Relative decrease in cerebellar perfusion based on stringent statistical threshold in the VR environment combined with improved subjective pain experience supports the hypotheses on the role of cerebellum in perception of noxious stimuli.
-
Extracranial carotid artery stenosis (ECAS) due to the presence of atherosclerotic plaque is a well-known risk factor for stroke. Several structural imaging studies have investigated the effect of ECAS on the brain, focusing on structural damage (in particular cerebral small vessel disease) and on the rearrangement of the cerebral circulation. For example, it is known from the literature an association between carotid stenosis and cerebral small vessel disease, and it is also noted that a series of compensatory mechanisms are activated by the cerebrovascular system in order to overcome the cerebral hypoperfusion that is induced by the ECAS. ⋯ Although these studies have been performed on small cohorts of patients without standardized protocols, it is plausible that in the future, such studies will help find early stage markers of cognitive impairment. This could permit an extension of indications for revascularization for the treatment of cognitive impairment in selected patients. The aim of this narrative review is to discuss the current knowledge on the effects of ECAS on brain and cognition by analyzing the main evidence from animal and clinical studies, with a special focus on rs-fc MR studies.