AI Article Synopsis

  • White matter hyperintensities (WMH) may worsen cognitive and motor functions in people with Parkinson's disease (PD), but the exact impact of WMH on these issues is not completely clear.
  • A systematic review and meta-analysis of 50 studies found that individuals with PD had a higher WMH burden compared to controls, and those with more WMH experienced worse cognitive abilities and motor performance.
  • While the majority of studies indicated a correlation between high WMH burden and cognitive/motor decline, only a few longitudinal studies were available, and they showed no significant difference in WMH burden at baseline for those who converted to mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or dementia.

Article Abstract

White matter damage quantified as white matter hyperintensities (WMH) may aggravate cognitive and motor impairments, but whether and how WMH burden impacts these problems in Parkinson's disease (PD) is not fully understood. This study aimed to examine the association between WMH and cognitive and motor performance in PD through a systematic review and meta-analysis. We compared the WMH burden across the cognitive spectrum (cognitively normal, mild cognitive impairment, dementia) in PD including controls. Motor signs were compared in PD with low/negative and high/positive WMH burden. We compared baseline WMH burden of PD who did and did not convert to MCI or dementia. MEDLINE and EMBASE databases were used to conduct the literature search resulting in 50 studies included for data extraction. Increased WMH burden was found in individuals with PD compared with individuals without PD (i.e. control) and across the cognitive spectrum in PD (i.e. PD, PD-MCI, PDD). Individuals with PD with high/positive WMH burden had worse global cognition, executive function, and attention. Similarly, PD with high/positive WMH presented worse motor signs compared with individuals presenting low/negative WMH burden. Only three longitudinal studies were retrieved from our search and they showed that PD who converted to MCI or dementia, did not have significantly higher WMH burden at baseline, although no data was provided on WMH burden changes during the follow up. We conclude, based on cross-sectional studies, that WMH burden appears to increase with PD worse cognitive and motor status in PD.

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Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105677DOI Listing

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