Vallotton, K;
David, G;
Hupp, M;
Pfender, N;
Cohen-Adad, J;
Fehlings, MG;
Samson, RS;
... Seif, M; + view all
(2021)
Tracking White and Gray Matter Degeneration along the Spinal Cord Axis in Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy.
Journal of Neurotrauma
, 38
(21)
pp. 2978-2987.
10.1089/neu.2021.0148.
Preview |
Text
Samson_neu.2021.0148.pdf Download (616kB) | Preview |
Abstract
This study aims to determine tissue-specific neurodegeneration across the spinal cord in patients with mild-moderate degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM). Twenty-four mild-moderate DCM and 24 healthy subjects were recruited. In patients, a T2-weighted scan was acquired at the compression site, while in all participants a T2*-weighted and diffusion-weighted scan was acquired at the cervical level (C2-C3) and in the lumbar enlargement (i.e. rostral and caudal to the site of compression). We quantified intramedullary signal changes, maximal canal and cord compression, white (WM) and grey matter (GM) atrophy, and microstructural indices from diffusion-weighted scans. All patients underwent clinical (modified Japanese Orthopaedic Association (mJOA)) and electrophysiological assessments. Regression analysis assessed associations between MRI readouts and electrophysiological and clinical outcomes. Twenty patients were classified with mild and four with moderate DCM using the mJOA scale. The most frequent site of compression was at C5-C6 level with maximum cord compression of 38.73±11.57%. Ten patients showed imaging evidence of cervical myelopathy. In the cervical cord, WM and GM atrophy and WM microstructural changes were evident, while in the lumbar cord only WM showed atrophy and microstructural changes. Remote cervical cord WM microstructural changes were pronounced in patients with radiological myelopathy and associated with impaired electrophysiology. Lumbar cord WM atrophy was associated with lower limb sensory impairments. In conclusion, tissue-specific neurodegeneration revealed by quantitative MRI, already apparent across the spinal cord in mild-moderate DCM prior to the onset of severe clinical impairments. WM microstructural changes are particularly sensitive to remote pathologically and clinically eloquent changes in DCM.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Tracking White and Gray Matter Degeneration along the Spinal Cord Axis in Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy |
| Location: | United States |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1089/neu.2021.0148 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1089/neu.2021.0148 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This Open Access article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons License (CC-BY) (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. |
| Keywords: | biomarker, DCM, DTI, This Open Access article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons License (CC-BY) ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited.spinal cord quantitative MRI |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology > Neuroinflammation |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10131110 |
Archive Staff Only
 |
View Item |
