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Age‐Related Cortical Thickness Reduction in Non‐Demented Down's Syndrome Subjects
Author(s) -
Romano Andrea,
Cornia Riccardo,
Moraschi Marta,
Bozzao Alessandro,
Chiacchiararelli Laura,
Coppola Valeria,
Iani Cristina,
Stella Giacomo,
Albertini Giorgio,
Pierallini Alberto
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of neuroimaging
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.822
H-Index - 64
eISSN - 1552-6569
pISSN - 1051-2284
DOI - 10.1111/jon.12259
Subject(s) - medicine , gyrus , cerebral cortex , superior frontal gyrus , correlation , anatomy , pathology , magnetic resonance imaging , radiology , geometry , mathematics
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The aim of this study was to investigate the characteristic pattern of age‐related cortical thinning in patients with Down Syndrome (DS), as assessed by MRI and automatic cortical thickness measurements. METHODS Ninety‐one non‐demented subjects with DS (range 11–53 years) were examined using a 1.5 T scanner. MRI‐based quantification of cortical thickness was performed using FreeSurfer software package., The Pearson product‐moment correlation coefficient between age and mean cortical thickness was evaluated for all subjects participating in the study. RESULTS A significant negative correlation between cortical thickness and age was found bilaterally in the frontal, temporal, parietal and cingulate gyrus. Specific investigation of cerebral lobes showed a more evident involvement of the frontal one, compared to others. Moreover, the age related reduction of cortical thickness appeared to be more significant and rapid in patients between 20 and 30 years of age. CONCLUSIONS Our findings showed that Down Syndrome subjects are affected by a diffuse cortical thinning. The involvement of cortical structures can be observed at an earlier age than previous studies have reported.