Does attentional dysfunction and thalamic atrophy predict decline in dementia with Lewy bodies?

Abstract:

INTRODUCTION: To evaluate the clinical characteristics of DLB subjects who died within 1 year of assessment compared to those who survived and investigate their patterns of in vivo regional thalamic atrophy using structural MRI. METHODS: Seventy subjects (35 DLB, 35 aged controls) underwent 3 T T1-weighted MR scanning as well as clinical and cognitive assessments, including a computerised assessment of attention. All subjects were contacted after 12 months for reassessment. For both hemispheres, using FSL FIRST, the thalamus was automatically segmented followed by inter-subject vertex-wise analyses involving group comparisons and behavioural correlates. RESULTS: There was significant bilateral atrophy in the ventral-dorsal and pulvinar regions in DLB relative to controls (pcorrected