Parkinson’s disease in the spinal cord: an exploratory study to establish T2*w, MTR and diffusion-weighted imaging metric values

Motivation: Much remains unknown about the impact of Parkinson's disease on the central nervous system, particularly how it affects the spinal cord microstructure. Goal(s): This exploratory study aims to establish DWI, MTR and T2*w metric values to explore potential morphometric alterations in the spinal cord related to Parkinson’s disease. Approach: DWI, MTR and T2*w metrics were extracted from both Parkinson’s disease patients and healthy controls. Results: Significant correlations were found in several regions of the spinal cord, particularly for ODI, FICVF and FA, suggesting the relevance of further studying these metrics in the spinal cord of Parkinson's disease patients. Impact: This study is the first to establish values for MTR, T2* and DWI metrics in the spinal cord of a population with Parkinson’s disease, which could contribute to a better understanding of this disease in the central nervous system.