GlaxoSmithKline Clinical Imaging Centre, London, UK.
J Neuroimaging. 2012 Jan;22(1):28-32. doi: 10.1111/j.1552-6569.2010.00536.x. Epub 2010 Nov 17.
Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a common neurological disorder the pathophysiology of which is incompletely understood. Four studies have examined structural differences between the brains of RLS patients and healthy controls, using voxel-based morphometry (VBM). All 4 studies have provided different results.
Optimized VBM was used to search for structural differences in gray matter density. Sixteen RLS patients naïve to dopaminergic drugs and 16 age- and sex-matched controls received structural T1-weighted MR scans. Structural data were analyzed using FSL-VBM.
No difference in gray matter density was detected between the two groups (voxel-wise significance: no significant voxels at P= .89 (whole brain Family Wise Error (FWE) corrected); no significant voxels at P < .05 (whole brain False Discovery Rate (FDR) corrected; smallest achievable FDR threshold .99).
CONCLUSION/DISCUSSION: The present study did not replicate (confirm) previous findings of structural brain changes in RLS, but instead supported the findings of a recent study showing a lack of gray matter alteration in an elderly RLS population. More specifically, the results do not support neuronal loss as an underlying disease mechanism in RLS. Potential limitations in the application of VBM are also discussed.
不宁腿综合征（RLS）是一种常见的神经系统疾病，其病理生理学尚未完全了解。四项研究使用基于体素的形态计量学（VBM）检查了 RLS 患者与健康对照者大脑的结构差异。所有四项研究均提供了不同的结果。
使用优化的 VBM 搜索灰质密度的结构差异。16 名对多巴胺能药物无反应的 RLS 患者和 16 名年龄和性别匹配的对照者接受了结构 T1 加权磁共振扫描。使用 FSL-VBM 分析结构数据。
两组之间未检测到灰质密度的差异（体素水平显著性：P=.89 时无显著体素（全脑家族错误校正（FWE）校正）；P<.05 时无显著体素（全脑假发现率（FDR）校正；最小可实现 FDR 阈值为.99）。
结论/讨论：本研究未复制（证实）RLS 结构脑改变的先前发现，而是支持了最近一项研究的发现，该研究表明在老年 RLS 人群中缺乏灰质改变。更具体地说，结果不支持神经元丢失是 RLS 的潜在疾病机制。还讨论了 VBM 应用中的潜在局限性。
