Brain imaging technique for early movement disorder diagnosis

http://news.ufl.edu/2013/06/13/brain-imaging/

Professor David Vaillancourt of the University of Florida believes that a diffusion tensor imaging technique could allow clinicians to assess movement disorders earlier, leading to improved treatment interventions and therapies.

Movement disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, essential tremor, multiple system atrophy and progressive supranuclear palsy exhibit similar symptoms in the early stages, which can make it challenging to assign a specific diagnosis. Often, the original diagnosis changes as the disease progresses.

Diffusion tensor imaging, known as DTI, is a non-invasive method that examines the diffusion of water molecules within the brain and can identify key areas that have been affected as a result of damage to gray matter and white matter in the brain. Vaillancourt and his team measured areas of the basal ganglia and cerebellum in individuals, and used a statistical approach to predict group classification. By asking different questions within the data and comparing different groups to one another, they were able to show distinct separation among disorders.