دراسة العلاقة بين الضعف المعرفي و سماكة القشرة الدماغية باستخدام التصوير بالرنين المغناطيسي للدماغ

Abstract EN

Objective:To study the relationship between the cognitive impairment and the brain cortical thickness by using the conventional protocol of brain MRI especially FLAIR consequence in order to detect the early changes as a tentative step to slower the progression to Alzheimer dementia (AD).

Methods: Analysis of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed on 678 patients who presented to the radiology department at Aleppo University Hospital, Al-Kindy Hospital and Al-Shahbaa radiology center.

All patients were 40 years old and above.

The patients were divided into two main groups according to their history (pre existing factors and diseases) and the results of their clinical cognitive assessment: cognitively normal group and cognitively impaired group.

The cortical thickness was measured in the temporal lobe and the frontorbital region and a statistical analysis was performed.

Results: Mild cognitive impairment is mildly more prevalent in males and in the early elderly stage (40-59 years), but Alzheimer dementia is mildly more prevalent in females and in the elderly stage (60 years and above).

Both of them show a clear increase in incidence in patients of low educational level (memory is like a muscle, so illiterate people almost have thin cerebral cortices).

Cortical thinning was found in the regions of interest and the thinning increases with the decline of cognitive status.

The cortical changes were found in 100% of AD group and in 73.47% of mild cognitive impairment group and that were found in frontorbital region and include all age stages with involvement of temporal lobe at a rate of (17.96%) which was more prevalent in elderly stage.

Conclusions: Brain MRI with conventional protocol plays an important role in the study of the relationship between cognitive impairment and cortical thickness of brain regions which mainly responsible for memory loss where cortical thinning correlates with cognitive impairment.

Frontorbital cortical thinning can be considered as an early sign for cognitive impairment, but temporal thinning especially in the middle and inferior gyri can be considered as an indicator to the possibility of progression to Alzheimer dementia.