Abstract

Objectives: This study aims to evaluate the correlation of iron deposition rates and volumetric measurements with clinical findings on cranial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in young-onset Parkinson’s patients between groups with and without gene change compared to controls.
Patients and Methods: The study included 28 patients (12 males, 16 females; mean age 44.9 years, range, 26 to 57 years) with a diagnosis of young-onset Parkinson’s disease followed-up at the Movement Disorders Outpatient Clinic of Neurology Department of Uludag University Faculty of Medicine and 13 healthy controls (6 males, 7 females; mean age 42.6 years; range 31 to 65 years) between 01.01.2013 and 01.01.2014. Gene changes and mutations in the SNCA (1-4), PARKIN, PINK1 and DJ1 genes that were thought to be related to the disease were investigated in all patients. Substantia nigra (SN) contrast ratio was evaluated in 3 tesla (T) cranial MRIs of all cases. T2 relaxation times of subcortical and brainstem structures (nucleus caudatus putamen, globus pallidus, thalamus, frontal white matter, corpus callosum) were recorded while volumetric measurements of cortical and subcortical structures were performed. The difference in MRI data between the groups with and without gene change and the control group as well as the relationship between the disease duration, stage and clinical status were examined.
Results: The SN contrast ratio decreased in patients detected to have gene change. Also, while the T2 relaxation time in SN and caudate nucleus decreased in all patients, there was no significant difference between the groups in volumetric measurements.
Conclusion: In our study, we wanted to draw attention to the fact that 3T cranial MRI in Parkinson’s disease may be a marker in the early diagnosis of the disease and radiological methods can be used in the clinically diagnosed disease.