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News & Views |
A decade of discovery and disappointment in dementia research
In my personal view, the past decade in dementia research has been marked by remarkable discoveries in the field of frontotemporal dementia, accompanied by steady scientific consolidation tinged with therapeutic disappointments related to Alzheimer disease.
- John R. Hodges
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In Brief |
From lesion mapping to network mapping
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Consensus Statement
| Open AccessMAGNIMS consensus guidelines on the use of MRI in multiple sclerosis—establishing disease prognosis and monitoring patients
In the second part of the MAGNIMS network's evidence-based guidelines, Wattjes and colleagues discuss the use of MRI in prognostication and follow-up in patients with multiple sclerosis. The group recommend several techniques that are useful for monitoring disease activity and treatment efficacy, and identify those techniques that require further study.
- Mike P. Wattjes
- , Àlex Rovira
- & Xavier Montalban
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Consensus Statement
| Open AccessMAGNIMS consensus guidelines on the use of MRI in multiple sclerosis—clinical implementation in the diagnostic process
The use of MRI in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) is commonplace in clinical settings. However, the precise implementation of MRI in the diagnosis of MS is highly variable, which is problematic in the context of the substantial technical advances of the past decade. In these Evidence-based Guidelines, members of the MAGNIMS study group present a standardized approach to the use of MRI in the diagnosis of MS.
- Àlex Rovira
- , Mike P. Wattjes
- & Xavier Montalban
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Review Article |
Rehabilitation and neuroplasticity in children with unilateral cerebral palsy
Current rehabilitative strategies for children with unilateral cerebral palsy (UCP) focus on activity-based tasks, but a greater understanding of the condition and the way in which the brain responds to therapy could enable the development of more-effective approaches. In this Review, the authors first discuss current rehabilitative strategies and the factors that are crucial to their success. They then consider in detail how neuroimaging is informing us about the neurobiology of UCP and the neuroplasticity in the brains of children with the condition, and how this knowledge could transform therapy.
- Lee B. Reid
- , Stephen E. Rose
- & Roslyn N. Boyd
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News & Views |
Can fMRI predict memory decline after temporal lobe resection?
Class I evidence supports the efficacy of surgical treatment in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy that is refractory to antiseizure medications. One major concern, however, is the risk of memory decline, particularly after temporal lobe resection in the language-dominant hemisphere. A new study evaluates a noninvasive technique to predict these memory deficits.
- Fernando Cendes
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Review Article |
Stimulation mapping of white matter tracts to study brain functional connectivity
At present, direct electrical stimulation (DES) is the only technique that allows directin vivomapping of white matter tracts in humans. In this Review, Hugues Duffau discusses the insights into functional connectivity that have been gained from DES during awake surgery for brain lesions. In addition, the author considers the clinical implications of a paradigmatic shift from a localizationist model to a hodotopical model of cerebral processing.
- Hugues Duffau
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Review Article |
White matter hyperintensities, cognitive impairment and dementia: an update
White matter hyperintensities (WMHs) are frequently seen on brain MRI in older people, and are thought to result from chronic ischaemia associated with cerebral small vessel disease. Prins and Scheltens provide a timely Review on WMHs, including their relationship with cognitive decline and dementia. The authors also discuss how WMHs might provide a therapeutic target to prevent the onset and progression of dementia.
- Niels D. Prins
- & Philip Scheltens
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Year in Review |
Progress in MS—classification, mechanisms and treatment
Scientific progress in multiple sclerosis (MS) research spanned a number of areas in 2014, including therapeutics, disease classification, risk management, and disease mechanisms. Advances were particularly notable in the field of progressive MS. Altogether, the findings move us one step closer to a better understanding of this complex disease.
- Jiwon Oh
- & Paul W. O'Connor
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Review Article |
Neuroimaging in Parkinson disease: from research setting to clinical practice
Despite a wealth of data generated by neuroimaging research in Parkinson disease (PD), no imaging techniques are currently recommended for routine clinical use. In this Review, Marios Politis assesses the various PET, single-photon emission CT, MRI and other imaging modalities that could aid the differential diagnosis and assessment of patients with PD. He then looks to the future of neuroimaging, including newly developed radioligands and combined-modality approaches, and discusses how research and clinical practice might better address the needs of patients.
- Marios Politis
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News & Views |
Can dopamine transporter imaging define early PD?
Dopaminergic brain imaging might aid early diagnosis of Parkinson disease (PD), but some patients with mild symptoms show no evidence of dopaminergic dysfunction at baseline, and apparently do not progress. Although some of these patients may have been misdiagnosed, others continue to fulfil PD diagnostic criteria despite normal follow-up brain scans.
- Angelo Antonini
- & Roberta Biundo
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News & Views |
Imaging the epileptic brain—time for new standards
Therapeutic management of patients with epilepsy is often challenging, particularly in those who are pharmacoresistant. In these patients, the only option to control seizures is elective surgery. Optimization of MRI acquisition sequences might mean early identification of patients, thereby speeding up surgical intervention.
- Neda Bernasconi
- & Andrea Bernasconi
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Review Article |
25 years of neuroimaging in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
The pathophysiological processes underlying onset and progression of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) remain poorly understood. Unlike conventional imaging techniques, which provide information only at a gross structural level, advanced imaging modalities have shed light on the microstructural changes that accompany this disease. Eva Feldman and colleagues describe how advanced neuroimaging studies have delineated key factors, such as white matter tract integrity and brain metabolism, that are altered in ALS, and consider how such insights could aid diagnosis and treatment.
- Bradley R. Foerster
- , Robert C. Welsh
- & Eva L. Feldman
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News & Views |
Mild cognitive impairment—amyloid and beyond
Recently developed criteria for diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer disease make use of clinical and biomarker information. A new study reports that these criteria apply in both community and research settings; however, results from the community-based cohort conflict with a proposed biomarker-based model of disease progression.
- Philip Scheltens
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Review Article |
Ushering in the study and treatment of preclinical Alzheimer disease
The pathological underpinnings of Alzheimer disease (AD) are now known to begin up to two decades before manifestation of clinical disease, and intervention during preclinical AD stages is increasingly recognized as key to therapeutic success. Here, Eric Reiman and colleagues discuss strategies to study changes in the brain and bodily fluids that precede clinical AD, focusing in particular on genetic at-risk individuals, who might be suitable candidates for secondary prevention trials.
- Jessica B. Langbaum
- , Adam S. Fleisher
- & Eric M. Reiman
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Research Highlight |
Oxidative stress in cells near amyloid plaques linked to neuronal death
- Bryony Jones
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Research Highlight |
Alzheimer disease biomarkers in healthy individuals can predict cognitive decline several years later
- Katie Kingwell
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Review Article |
Transient amnesic syndromes
Transient amnesic syndromes, such as transient global amnesia and transient epileptic amnesia, are often difficult to diagnose. Recent studies, however, have examined the structural and functional underpinnings of these disorders. In this Review, Bartsch and Butler discuss how these studies have improved our understanding of transient amnesic syndromes, summarizing the key clinical aspects of different amnesic disorders and providing recommendations for diagnosis and patient management.
- Thorsten Bartsch
- & Christopher Butler
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Review Article |
Neuroplasticity and functional recovery in multiple sclerosis
Despite widespread damage associated with multiple sclerosis (MS) pathology, recovery of function can occur, driven by adaptive plasticity in brain networks. Tomassini et al. review the mechanisms underlying functional recovery in MS, and discuss interventions that might promote this process. Methodological considerations for imaging neuroplasticity using functional MRI are also highlighted.
- Valentina Tomassini
- , Paul M. Matthews
- & Jacqueline Palace
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Research Highlight |
Measures of functional brain connectivity can be used to predict outcome after glioma surgery
- Katie Kingwell
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Research Highlight |
Florbetapir—a useful tool to image amyloid load and predict cognitive decline in Alzheimer disease
- Katie Kingwell
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Review Article |
EEG source imaging in epilepsy—practicalities and pitfalls
EEG source imaging (ESI) is a technique designed to predict the source of a given field potential obtained using EEG. Kaiboriboonet al.describe the principles and technical aspects underlying ESI in epilepsy. They discuss the practicalities and pitfalls of ESI in the clinical setting, specifically for epileptic source localization and identification of the eloquent cortex—two important considerations when planning resective surgery in patients with refractory epilepsy.
- Kitti Kaiboriboon
- , Hans O. Lüders
- & Samden D. Lhatoo
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Review Article |
The paradox of syndromic diversity in Alzheimer disease
Variant forms of Alzheimer disease (AD) exist that are associated with amyloid deposition in the brain but have disparate clinical features. In this Review, the authors argue that selective vulnerability of a core functional network could explain the clinical heterogeneity of disease symptoms in atypical AD and other neurodegenerative disorders.
- Jason D. Warren
- , Phillip D. Fletcher
- & Hannah L. Golden
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Research Highlight |
Enhanced functional connectivity in AD after deep brain stimulation
- Ellen Bible
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Year in Review |
Major advances across the spectrum of stroke care
Several pivotal clinical trials that could have a major impact on the care of patients with stroke were published in 2011. The studies cover a wide range of stroke-care aspects, including stroke prevention, imaging to select patients for thrombolysis, therapies for stroke recovery, and stroke registries to improve care quality.
- Lee H. Schwamm