Haley Andreana P, Sweet Lawrence H, Gunstad John, Forman Daniel E, Poppas Athena, Paul Robert H, Tate David F, Cohen Ronald A
Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Brown Medical School, Providence, Rhode Island, USA.
J Neuroimaging. 2007 Jul;17(3):227-33. doi: 10.1111/j.1552-6569.2007.00110.x.
Intimal-medial thickening (IMT) of the carotid wall is an accepted peripheral marker of atherosclerosis. It is associated with increased risk for myocardial infarction and stroke, and lower attention-executive-psychomotor functioning. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between IMT and brain activity during a verbal working memory (VWM) task in patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD).
Thirteen CVD patients underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during a 2-Back VWM task, and B-mode ultrasound of the carotid arteries. IMT was calculated using an automated algorithm based on a validated edge-detection technique. The relationship between IMT and 2-Back-related brain activity was modeled using partial correlations controlling for age and small vessel disease as measured by white matter signal hyperintensities on MRI (WMH).
Higher IMT was associated with lower 2-Back-related signal intensity and in the right middle frontal gyrus, independent of age and WMH.
IMT may be one mechanism contributing to brain dysfunction in CVD. The blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) contrast appears to be highly sensitive to peripheral vascular health as measured by IMT. Future studies should examine the sensitivity and specificity of the BOLD response for predicting cognitive decline in CVD.
颈动脉壁内膜中层增厚（IMT）是公认的动脉粥样硬化外周标志物。它与心肌梗死和中风风险增加以及注意力-执行-心理运动功能降低有关。本研究的目的是探讨心血管疾病（CVD）患者在言语工作记忆（VWM）任务期间IMT与脑活动之间的关系。
13名CVD患者在进行2-back VWM任务期间接受了功能磁共振成像（fMRI）以及颈动脉B超检查。IMT采用基于经验证的边缘检测技术的自动算法进行计算。使用偏相关性对IMT与2-back相关脑活动之间的关系进行建模，同时控制年龄以及通过MRI上的白质信号高信号（WMH）测量的小血管疾病。
较高的IMT与较低的2-back相关信号强度相关，且在右侧额中回中独立于年龄和WMH。
IMT可能是导致CVD患者脑功能障碍的一种机制。通过IMT测量，血氧水平依赖（BOLD）对比似乎对外周血管健康高度敏感。未来的研究应检验BOLD反应预测CVD患者认知衰退的敏感性和特异性。
