Lacunes independent imaging markers that predict acceleration of Parkinson's disease

China: A new study found that Lacunes are independent imaging markers that accelerate the course of Parkinson's disease (PD) by worsening visual scanning, attention, and processing speed in patients with PD. The study results were published in the journal Brain and Behavior.  

Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative, chronic, and progressive disease characterized by bradykinesia, rest tremor, rigidity, and gait/posture instability. The cognitive and motor function in PD can be worsened by Cerebral small vessel disease. Lacunes are the imaging markers of cerebral small vessel disease that frequently occur in patients with PD. As past literature has shown the relation between Cerebral small vessel disease and PD, Keke Chen et al from China conducted a study to investigate the associations of lacunes, cognition, and motor function in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and whether these associations are independent of other imaging markers. 

The study was carried out by including patients from Beijing Rehabilitation Hospital between April 2019 to July 2022.  All the participants underwent brain magnetic resonance imaging scans, clinical scale evaluations, and neuropsychological tests, as well as quantitative evaluation of postural control. Multivariate linear regression models were constructed to sort out the effect of lacunes and to eliminate the possible factors contributing to cognition and motor dysfunction in patients with PD, in particular white matter hyperintensities and enlarged perivascular space in the basal ganglia.