Rizzi Liara, Aventurato Ítalo Karmann, Balthazar Marcio L F
Department of Neurology, University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas, Brazil.
Front Neurol. 2021 Mar 15;12:640525. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2021.640525. eCollection 2021.
The last years have evinced a remarkable growth in neuroimaging studies around the world. All these studies have contributed to a better understanding of the cerebral outcomes of dementia, even in the earliest phases. In low- and middle-income countries, studies involving structural and functional neuroimaging are challenging due to low investments and heterogeneous populations. Outstanding the importance of diagnosing mild cognitive impairment and dementia, the purpose of this paper is to offer an overview of neuroimaging dementia research in Brazil. The review includes a brief scientometric analysis of quantitative information about the development of this field over the past 10 years. Besides, discusses some peculiarities and challenges that have limited neuroimaging dementia research in this big and heterogeneous country of Latin America. We systematically reviewed existing neuroimaging literature with Brazilian authors that presented outcomes related to a dementia syndrome, published from 2010 to 2020. Briefly, the main neuroimaging methods used were morphometrics, followed by fMRI, and DTI. The major diseases analyzed were Alzheimer's disease, mild cognitive impairment, and vascular dementia, respectively. Moreover, research activity in Brazil has been restricted almost entirely to a few centers in the Southeast region, and funding could be the main driver for publications. There was relative stability concerning the number of publications per year, the citation impact has historically been below the world average, and the author's gender inequalities are not relevant in this specific field. Neuroimaging research in Brazil is far from being developed and widespread across the country. Fortunately, increasingly collaborations with foreign partnerships contribute to the impact of Brazil's domestic research. Although the challenges, neuroimaging researches performed in the native population regarding regional peculiarities and adversities are of pivotal importance.
近年来，全球范围内的神经影像学研究呈现出显著增长。所有这些研究都有助于更好地理解痴呆症的脑部结果，即使在最早阶段也是如此。在低收入和中等收入国家，由于投资不足和人群异质性，涉及结构和功能神经影像学的研究具有挑战性。鉴于诊断轻度认知障碍和痴呆症的重要性，本文旨在概述巴西的神经影像学痴呆症研究。该综述包括对该领域过去10年发展的定量信息进行简要的科学计量分析。此外，还讨论了一些限制了在这个幅员辽阔且人口多样的拉丁美洲国家进行神经影像学痴呆症研究的特殊性和挑战。我们系统地回顾了2010年至2020年发表的、有巴西作者参与且呈现与痴呆症综合征相关结果的现有神经影像学文献。简而言之，主要使用的神经影像学方法是形态计量学，其次是功能磁共振成像（fMRI）和弥散张量成像（DTI）。分析的主要疾病分别是阿尔茨海默病、轻度认知障碍和血管性痴呆。此外，巴西的研究活动几乎完全局限于东南部地区的少数几个中心，资金可能是出版物的主要驱动力。每年的出版物数量相对稳定，引文影响力历来低于世界平均水平，在这个特定领域作者的性别不平等问题并不突出。巴西的神经影像学研究远未在全国得到发展和普及。幸运的是，与国外伙伴关系的合作日益增多，有助于提升巴西国内研究的影响力。尽管存在挑战，但针对当地人群的区域特殊性和不利条件进行的神经影像学研究至关重要。
