Gunning-Dixon F M, Head D, McQuain J, Acker J D, Raz N
Department of Psychology, University of Memphis, TN 38152, USA.
AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 1998 Sep;19(8):1501-7.
Advancing age is associated with declines in motor function; understanding age-related changes in the basal ganglia, therefore, is imperative for comprehension of such functional changes. The purpose of this study was to examine the age, sex, and hemispheric differences in volume of the caudate nucleus, the putamen, and the globus pallidus.
In a sample of 148 healthy right-handed adults (18-77 years old) with no evidence of age-related motor disorders, we estimated the volume of the head of the caudate nucleus, the putamen, and the globus pallidus from MR images.
The analyses revealed bilateral age-related shrinkage of the head of the caudate nucleus and the putamen in both sexes. In men, the age-related shrinkage of the caudate was stronger on the left, whereas, in women, the opposite trend was evident. In both sexes, age-related shrinkage of the right putamen was greater than of its left counterpart. The mild bilateral age-related shrinkage of the globus pallidus was observed only in men. In both sexes, we observed significant rightward asymmetry in the putamen, significant leftward asymmetry in the caudate, and no asymmetry in the globus pallidus.
Bilateral age-related shrinkage of the neostriatum is found in healthy adults. The shrinkage of the globus pallidus is less pronounced and may be restricted to men only.
年龄增长与运动功能下降相关；因此，了解基底神经节中与年龄相关的变化对于理解此类功能变化至关重要。本研究的目的是检查尾状核、壳核和苍白球体积的年龄、性别及半球差异。
在148名无年龄相关运动障碍证据的健康右利手成年人（18 - 77岁）样本中，我们从磁共振图像估计尾状核头部、壳核和苍白球的体积。
分析显示，两性的尾状核头部和壳核均存在与年龄相关的双侧萎缩。在男性中，左侧尾状核的年龄相关萎缩更强，而在女性中则呈现相反趋势。在两性中，右侧壳核的年龄相关萎缩均大于左侧。仅在男性中观察到苍白球存在轻度的与年龄相关的双侧萎缩。在两性中，我们观察到壳核存在显著的右侧不对称，尾状核存在显著的左侧不对称，而苍白球不存在不对称。
在健康成年人中发现新纹状体存在与年龄相关的双侧萎缩。苍白球的萎缩不太明显，可能仅局限于男性。
