Rinsho Shinkeigaku (Clinical Neurology)

The 49th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Neurology

Functional imaging in Binswanger's disease

Hidekazu Tomimoto, M.D.1)3), Masafumi Ihara, M.D.1), Ryosuke Takahashi, M.D.1) and Hidenao Fukuyama, M.D.2)

1)Department of Neurology, Kyoto University, Graduate School of Medicine
2)Human Brain Reasearch Center, Kyoto University, Graduate School of Medicine
3)present address: Department of Neurology, Mie University, Graduate School of Medicine

White matter lesions are frequently observed in the elderly, and have been postulated to be responsible for dementia and parkinsonism. At first, we revealed that cholinergic pathways are damaged in the external capsule due to white matter lesions in Binswanger's disease. In addition, a flumazenil (FMZ)-PET study, a marker of benzodiazepine/GABAA receptors, revealed that FMZ-binding was decreased in the prefrontal cortex and the insular cortex in demented patients with extensive white matter lesions. In contrast, FMZ-binding was decreased in the premotor cortex and the striatum in the patients with extensive white matter lesions and parkinsonism, as compared to those with white matter lesions but without parkinsonism. These results indicate that subcortical nerve fiber damages may impair neural networks and hence, the neural function in the corresponding gray matter.
Full Text of this Article in Japanese PDF (409K)

(CLINICA NEUROL, 48: 947|950, 2008)
key words: white matter lesion, Binswanger's disease, cholinergic nervous system, MRI, PET

(Received: 16-May-08)