肠易激综合征患者情绪障碍调查及其发生机制研究

目的研究肠易激综合征(IBS)患者抑郁、焦虑发生情况及其发生的病理生理机制。方法对50例IBS患者和50例正常对照者进行抑郁自评(SDS)、焦虑自评(SAS)及艾森克个性问卷(EPQ);并将抑郁、焦虑评分与局部脑血流灌注量进行相关分析。结果 IBS患者抑郁发生率为76%,以中度抑郁为主;焦虑发生率为46%,以轻度焦虑为主;对照组无抑郁发生,轻度焦虑10.6%。抑郁评分与左侧屏状核,左侧豆状核、右侧直回、右侧钩回血流灌注呈负相关,与左侧楔叶、两侧楔前叶、左侧枕上回、右侧缘上回、右侧顶下小叶血流呈正相关。焦虑评分与左侧屏状核、左侧岛叶血流呈负相关。结论 IBS患者存在明显抑郁、焦虑情绪;大脑血流灌注异常可能是其发生情绪障碍的病理生理机制之一。     

Resting cerebral blood flow alteration in severe obstructive sleep apnoea: an arterial spin labelling perfusion fMRI study

Study objectives

The aim of this study is to investigate changes in regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in awake people with untreated severe obstructive sleep apnoea (OSAs) compared with good sleepers (GSs).

Design

Arterial spin labelling perfusion imaging was used to quantify cerebral perfusion based on resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Setting

Lying supine in a 3.0-T magnetic resonance imaging scanner in the night was done.

Participants

Included in this study were 30 subjects with OSA (males; mean age 38.4 years, range 25–55) and 30 controls (males; mean age: 38.3 years, range 26–52) matched for age and years of education.

Results

Compared with GSs, participants with severe OSA had reduced rCBF in the left cerebellum posterior lobe, left temporal lobe, right medial frontal gyrus, and bilateral parahippocampal gyrus and increased rCBF in the bilateral superior frontal gyrus. The lower mean CBF in the right parahippocampal gyrus exhibited a significant positive correlation with arousal index (r = 0.365, P = 0.047). The increased mean CBF in the left superior frontal gyrus exhibited a significant positive correlation with the longest apnoea time (r = 0.422, P = 0.020), and the increased mean CBF in the right superior frontal gyrus exhibited a significant positive correlation with the longest apnoea time (r = 0.447, P = 0.013).

Conclusions

Our results show that the altered rCBF pattern in the left cerebellum posterior lobe, left temporal lobe, left medial frontal gyrus, bilateral parahippocampal gyrus and superior frontal gyrus in patients have with severe OSA. The arterial spin labelling perfusion imaging method is a useful non-invasive imaging tool for detection of early changes in the regional cerebral blood flow in patients with OSA.

     

Correlation between each task of the Mini-Mental State Examination and regional glucose hypometabolism in at-rest Alzheimer's disease patients

We investigated the relationship between each task of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and regional glucose hypometabolism in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). We studied 38 patients with probable AD using 2-¹⁸F-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET). The images were corrected for differences in FDG uptake by cerebellar normalization, and were spatially normalized into a standard stereotactic anatomical space using statistical parametric mapping (SPM). There was a positive correlation between FDG uptake and the MMSE subscores for temporal orientation in the bilateral temporal and frontal cortex, and cingulate gyrus; for spatial orientation in the left parietal cortex, bilateral frontal and temporal cortex, and cingulate gyrus; for attention and calculation in the left temporal and frontal cortex; for writing in the left temporal cortex; and for copying and drawing, the correlation was positive in the bilateral parietal and occipital cortex. The total MMSE score was positively correlated with FDG uptake in the left temporal and frontal lobe. Our study demonstrated that, in AD patients, the distribution of hypometabolism in the resting state was related to clinical symptoms and that MMSE scores reflected brain dysfunction in the left hemisphere. Correlation analysis using SPM and FDG PET is useful for the objective evaluation of cognitive tests and diagnostic scoring.     

缺血性卒中后非流利型失语患者局部一致性变化：静息态功能性磁共振成像研究

目的 探讨缺血性卒中后非流利性失语患者静息态功能磁共振成像（functionalmagnetic resonance imaging fMRI）的脑功能特点.方法 对17例缺血性卒中后非流利性失语患者以及19名年龄、性别和受教育程度均匹配的健康对照者进行静息态fMRI检查,采用局部区域一致性（regional homogeneity,ReHo）分析方法计算静息态下脑区的ReHo情况.结果 与对照组比较,患者组左侧额上回、右侧额下回、右侧脑岛以及右侧缘上回ReHo值增高,右侧小脑半球、左侧颞上回、颞中回以及右侧颞下回脑区ReHo值降低.结论 在静息状态下,缺血性卒中后非流利性失语患者存在多个脑区ReHo异常,这种异常改变可能与其功能损伤后修复的代偿作用有关.     

Frontal white matter and cingulum diffusion tensor imaging deficits in alcoholism

Background:  Alcoholism-related deficits in cognition and emotion point toward frontal and limbic dysfunction, particularly in the right hemisphere. Prefrontal and anterior cingulate cortices are involved in cognitive and emotional functions and play critical roles in the oversight of the limbic reward system. In the present study, we examined the integrity of white matter tracts that are critical to frontal and limbic connectivity.
Methods:  Diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging (DT-MRI) was used to assess functional anisotropy (FA), a measure of white matter integrity, in 15 abstinent long-term chronic alcoholic and 15 demographically equivalent control men. Voxel-based and region-based analyses of group FA differences were applied to these scans.
Results:  Alcoholic subjects had diminished frontal lobe FA in the right superior longitudinal fascicles II and III, orbitofrontal cortex white matter, and cingulum bundle, but not in corresponding left hemisphere regions. These right frontal and cingulum white matter regional FA measures provided 97% correct group discrimination. Working Memory scores positively correlated with superior longitudinal fascicle III FA measures in control subjects only.
Conclusions:  The findings demonstrate white matter microstructure deficits in abstinent alcoholic men in several right hemisphere tracts connecting prefrontal and limbic systems. These white matter deficits may contribute to underlying dysfunction in memory, emotion, and reward response in alcoholism.     

高血压与脑小血管病患者磁共振弥散张量成像的相关性研究

目的探讨高血压与脑小血管病(SVD)患者磁共振弥散张量成像(DTI)的关系。方法选择55例SVD患者分为血压正常组19例和高血压组36例。行MRI和DTI检查,观察感兴趣区部分各向异性(FA)及表观扩散系数(ADC)的变化,分析其与血压的相关性。结果与血压正常组比较,高血压组左、右侧半卵圆中心和左侧额叶FA值显著降低(P<0.01);左侧半卵圆中心ADC值显著升高(P<0.05)。Pearson相关分析显示,高血压组左、右侧半卵圆中心FA值与收缩压呈负相关(r=-0.338,P=0.044;r=-0.334,P=0.046);左侧半卵圆中心和左侧额叶FA值与舒张压呈负相关(r=-0.419,P=0.011;r=-0.355,P=0.034);右侧半卵圆中心ADC值与舒张压呈正相关(r=0.336,P=0.045)。结论 DTI能够更敏感地显示高血压对SVD患者脑微观结构的损害,为评价高血压性脑损伤提供研究工具。     

应用动脉自旋标记技术分析阿尔茨海默病脑血流灌注成像的研究

目的应用脉冲动脉自旋标记技术,分析阿尔茨海默病(AD)患者脑血流灌注的改变情况。方法采集静息状态下17例AD患者(AD组)及17例健康志愿者(对照组)动脉自旋标记的灌注成像数据,计算其相对脑血流量。结果与对照组比较,AD组患者双侧颞叶、左侧额叶、双侧顶叶、双侧枕叶及左侧丘脑的相对脑血流量均有下降。结论动脉自旋标记的灌注成像为检测AD患者异常灌注改变提供了一种有价值的方法,AD患者的低灌注与其脑结构和功能的改变密切相关。     

非痴呆型皮质下小血管性认知障碍患者的MRI、DTI表现

目的探讨常规磁共振成像(MRI)和扩散张量成像(DTI)在非痴呆型皮质下小血管性认知障碍(VCIND-SSVD)诊断中的价值。方法采用蒙特利尔认知量表(MoCA)、简易智能状态检查量表(MMSE)对26例非痴呆型血管性认知障碍和24例正常对照者的认知功能进行评价,通过常规MRI分析两组脑叶萎缩、皮质下白质疏松和腔隙性脑梗死等影像学参数的差异;通过DTI技术测量双侧额叶、顶叶、颞叶、枕叶、内囊前肢、内囊膝部及内囊后肢的分量各向异性(FA)和平均扩散率(MD)的差异;对VCIND-SSVD组患者MoCA总分及其子项评分与FA和MD进行相关分析。结果常规MRI显示脑叶萎缩、皮质下白质疏松和腔隙性脑梗死等影像学参数在两组间无明显差异,与认知功能无明显相关(均P>0.05)。VCIND-SSVD组双侧额叶FA值与对照组比较明显下降,差异有统计学意义(均P<0.01);VCIND-SSVD组双侧额叶MD值与对照组比较明显升高,差异有统计学意义(均P<0.01);两组间顶叶、颞叶、枕叶、内囊前肢、内囊膝部及内囊后肢的FA、MD值差异均无统计学意义(均P>0.05)。VCIND-SSVD组患者双侧额叶FA值下降程度与MoCA评分及注意力、语言功能、抽象概括能力、视空间与执行能力等子项评分均呈正相关,(r=0.43~0.71,P<0.05,<0.01),MD值升高程度与MoCA评分及注意力、语言功能、抽象概括能力、视空间与执行能力等子项评分均呈负相关(r=-0.43~-0.67,P<0.05,<0.01)。结论 VCIND-SSVD患者认知功能损害可能与双侧额叶白质损伤有关,DTI在VCIND早期诊断中起着重要的作用。     

Disrupted White Matter Integrity in Heroin Dependence: A Controlled Study Utilizing Diffusion Tensor Imaging

Objectives: Fractional anisotropy (FA) via diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) can quantify the white matter integrity. Exposure to addictive drugs, such as alcohol, cocaine, methamphetamine, marijuana, and nicotine has been shown to alter FA. White matter abnormalities have been shown, but it remains unclear whether the white matter FA is altered in heroin dependence. Methods: Utilizing DTI, we investigated the FA difference between heroin-dependent and control subjects by a voxel-based strategy. The FA values of the identified regions were calculated from the FA image of each subject and were correlated with clinical features including months of heroin use, age, education, and dose of methadone. Results: Reduced FA among 16 heroin dependent subjects was located in the bilateral frontal sub-gyral regionsm, right precentral and left cingulate gyrus. FA in the right frontal sub-gyral was negatively correlated with duration of heroin use. Conclusion: The disrupted white matter integrity in right frontal white matter may occur in continuous heroin abuse.     

脑梗死后运动性失语的局部脑功能活动强度研究

目的利用静息态功能磁共振成像(fMRI)分析脑梗死后运动性失语患者脑功能区域活动强度的变化。方法选择急性缺血性脑卒中后运动性失语患者14例作为病例组,同期健康体检者16例作为对照组,2组采用汉语失语成套测验进行言语行为学测试,计算失语指数(AQ)评分,之后行静息态fMRI检查,记录低频波动振幅(ALFF),以全脑标准化的ALFF(mALFF)用于分析,采用REST软件进行统计分析。结果与对照组比较,病例组左侧小脑半球、右侧颞上回、右侧颞中回、右侧丘脑、右侧海马旁回、右侧中央前回、左侧额中回mALFF值明显增高(P<0.05);左侧中央前回、左侧内侧颞上回、右侧颞极mALFF值明显降低(P<0.05)。病例组所有患者左侧内侧额上回的mALFF值在-0.75~0.83,AQ评分在17~64分,且mALFF值与AQ评分呈正相关(r=0.590,P=0.026)。结论静息状态下,脑梗死后运动性失语患者某些脑区异常激活,为此类患者的诊治提供了思路。     

Cerebral anatomical changes in female asthma patients with and without depression compared to healthy controls and patients with depression

Background: Population-based studies have demonstrated that asthma patients with depression symptoms are more likely to have poor asthma control and worse asthma outcomes. However, the underlying mechanism of the relationship between asthma and depression is still unclear. The present study aimed to examine the cerebral anatomical changes in female asthma patients with and without depression. Methods: Using structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and a voxel-based morphometry technique, the primary effects of and the interaction between asthma and depression were analyzed. The cerebral gray matter volume (GMV) was compared between the groups. Correlation analyses between the GMV value of the brain regions and the clinical parameters were completed. Results: The interaction effect of asthma and depression was found on the right superior temporal gyrus (STG) and the left middle temporal gyrus. Patients with both asthma and depression showed less GMV in the right STG, the bilateral precuneus, and the right superior frontal gyrus compared to patients with asthma only. The GMV of the right STG showed a decrement form among the asthma only group, healthy controls and asthma plus depression group. In patients with asthma and depression, the volume of the right STG was positively correlated with PD₂₀ (r?=?0.714, p?=?0.047) and negatively correlated with the nocturnal awakening score in the Asthma Control Test (r?=??0.061, p?=?0.038). Conclusion: Current findings provided convergent evidence to support the critical role of the right STG in the brain mechanism that mediates asthma and depression.     

弓形虫抗体阳性与阴性精神分裂症患者临床症状差异性研究

目的分析弓形虫抗体阳性与阴性精神分裂症患者病情及临床症状的差异性,为临床治疗提供依据。方法采用简明精神病评定量表（BPRS）、阳性症状量表（SAPS）及阴性症状量表（SANS）,比较120例弓形虫抗体阳性精神分裂症患者和120例弓形虫抗体阴性精神分裂症患者病情及临床症状的差异性。结果弓形虫抗体阳性精神分裂症患者BPRS总分和SAPS总分分别为116.98±12.49和68.12±12.18,弓形虫抗体阴性精神分裂症患者分别为110.52±11.43和61.60±11.62,差异均有统计学意义（P〈0.01）;弓形虫抗体阳性精神分裂症患者SANS总分为60.42±13.83,弓形虫抗体阴性精神分裂症患者SANS总分为64.37±14.42,差异有统计学意义（P〈0.01）。结论弓形虫抗体阳性与阴性精神分裂症患者病情及临床症状存在较大差异,治疗时应区别对待。     

Neural activity related to anger in cocaine-dependent men: a possible link to violence and relapse

This study examined the neural correlates of cue-induced anger in cocaine-dependent men in an initial investigation of possible neurobiological explanations for the putative association between cocaine addiction and violence. We used positron emission tomography (PET) to localize alterations in regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) during mental imagery of a personal anger-associated scene and of an emotionally neutral scene in ten cocaine-dependent men. Compared to the emotionally neutral imagery control condition, anger was associated with marked decreases in rCBF in multiple areas of the frontal cortex (particularly the right inferior frontal gyrus), left posterior insula, left fusiform gyrus, and midbrain. Conversely, this same inferior frontal area was activated by anger imagery in nicotine-dependent men. Anger was also associated with increases in rCBF in the right fusiform gyrus, right and left middle occipital gyri, left post-central gyrus, left medial frontal gyrus, left cuneus, and in the left anterior cingulate gyrus. The study showed that cue-induced anger in cocaine-dependent men was associated with decreased activity in frontal cortical areas involved in response monitoring and inhibition. The lack of this association in nicotine-dependent men suggests a possible deficit in anger regulation associated with cocaine dependence and a possible link between cocaine dependence, violence, and relapse.     

静息态fMRI技术观察肝性脑病患者双侧苍白球与全脑网络连接的改变研究*

目的 采用静息态功能MR（fMRI）技术探讨肝性脑病（HE）患者双侧苍白球与全脑网络连接的改变。方法 2015年2月~2017年6月诊治的明显HE患者（OHE）28例,轻微型HE患者（MHE）30例和选择健康人30例,受试者接受静息态fMRI扫描,选取双侧苍白球为种子点并进行全脑功能连接,分析比较各组双侧苍白球区域的脑功能网络连接差异。结果 HE患者苍白球与全脑网络连接出现差异的位置主要集中在额叶、顶叶和颞叶（P均<0.05）,与健康人比,OHE患者右侧枕下回、右侧额中回、左侧眶部额上回等脑区连接减弱,而在左海马旁回、双侧尾状核、左三角部额下回连接增强;MHE患者左中央前回、左内侧额上回、双侧颞中回等脑区连接减弱;与MHE患者比,OHE患者右侧楔前叶、右侧颞中回、右梭状回、右侧角回连接减弱,而双侧尾状核和右侧颞下回连接增强（P均<0.05）。结论 HE患者双侧苍白球区域与多个脑区的功能连接受损,可能与临床出现的认知功能障碍有关。     

Effect of chronic smoking on regional cerebral blood flow in asymptomatic individuals]

The chronic effects of cigarette smoking upon regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) are unclear. The present study investigated the effects of smoking on rCBF assessed by intravenous 133Xe injection in 40 asymptomatic individuals. Analysis was performed using linear regression analysis and multiple regression analysis, creating a model of the rCBF as a function of cerebrovascular risk factor. The risk factors included smoking status, smoking index, age, gender, mean arterial blood pressure, total cholesterol, fasting blood glucose, hematocrit and STT change and left ventricular hypertrophy in electrocardiogram. The male-to-female ratio was higher in the smoking group (18/2) than that in the non-smoking group (2/18). Among the smokers, mean hematocrit was significantly higher than in the non-smokers (p < 0.01). There was no significant difference in rCBF and other variables between the two groups. Linear regression analysis revealed significantly negative correlations between smoking index and CBF in the whole brain (r = -0.33; p < 0.05), right hemisphere (r = -0.34; p < 0.05), right parietal cortex (r = -0.36; p < 0.05), right occipital cortex (r = -0.34; p < 0.05) and left parietal cortex (r = -0.33; p < 0.05). In other variables, age, male sex, hematocrit, left ventricular hypertrophy and STT change showed significantly negative correlations with rCBF. To reduce the effect of confounding variables in our assessment of the dose-related response, a multivariate regression analysis was carried out treating rCBF as a dependent variable and risk factors as independent variables. In the final model, age, hematocrit, male sex and presence of BCG changes remained as independent negative predictors for rCBF.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Gray Matter Loss and Related Functional Connectivity Alterations in A Chinese Family With Benign Adult Familial Myoclonic Epilepsy

Benign adult familial myoclonic epilepsy (BAFME) is a non-progressive monogenic epilepsy syndrome. So far, the structural and functional brain reorganizations in BAFME remain uncharacterized. This study aims to investigate gray matter atrophy and related functional connectivity alterations in patients with BAFME using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).Eleven BAFME patients from a Chinese pedigree and 15 matched healthy controls were enrolled in the study. Optimized voxel-based morphometric and resting-state functional MRI approaches were performed to measure gray matter atrophy and related functional connectivity, respectively. The Trail-Making Test-part A and part B, Digit Symbol Test (DST), and Verbal Fluency Test (VFT) were carried out to evaluate attention and executive functions.The BAFME patients exhibited significant gray matter loss in the right hippocampus, right temporal pole, left orbitofrontal cortex, and left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. With these regions selected as seeds, the voxel-wise functional connectivity analysis revealed that the right hippocampus showed significantly enhanced connectivity with the right inferior parietal lobule, bilateral middle cingulate cortex, left precuneus, and left precentral gyrus. Moreover, the BAFME patients showed significant lower scores in DST and VFT tests compared with the healthy controls. The gray matter densities of the right hippocampus, right temporal pole, and left orbitofrontal cortex were significantly positively correlated with the DST scores. In addition, the gray matter density of the right temporal pole was significantly positively correlated with the VFT scores, and the gray matter density of the right hippocampus was significantly negatively correlated with the duration of illness in the patients.The current study demonstrates gray matter loss and related functional connectivity alterations in the BAFME patients, perhaps underlying deficits in attention and executive functions in the BAFME.     

Regional cerebral blood flow in fibromyalgia: single-photon-emission computed tomography evidence of reduction in the pontine tegmentum and thalami

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) is abnormal in any cerebral structure of women with fibromyalgia (FM), following a report that rCBF is reduced in the thalami and heads of caudate nuclei in FM. METHODS: Seventeen women with FM and 22 healthy women had a resting single-photon-emission computed tomography (SPECT) brain scan to assess rCBF and a T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan to enable precise anatomic localization. Additionally, all participants underwent 2 manual tender point examinations and completed a set of questionnaires evaluating clinical features. SPECT scans were analyzed for differences in rCBF between groups using statistical parametric mapping (SPM) and regions of interest (ROIs) manually drawn on coregistered MRI. RESULTS: Compared with control subjects, the rCBF in FM patients was significantly reduced in the right thalamus (P = 0.006), but not in the left thalamus or head of either caudate nucleus. SPM analysis indicated a statistically significant reduction in rCBF in the inferior pontine tegmentum (corrected P = 0.006 at the cluster level and corrected P = 0.023 for voxel of maximal significance), with consistent findings from ROI analysis (P = 0.003). SPM also detected a reduction in rCBF on the perimeter of the right lentiform nucleus. No correlations were found with clinical features or indices of pain threshold. CONCLUSION: Our finding of a reduction in thalamic rCBF is consistent with findings of functional brain imaging studies of other chronic clinical pain syndromes, while our finding of reduced pontine tegmental rCBF is new. The pathophysiologic significance of these changes in FM remains to be elucidated.     

Low nocturnal blood pressure is associated with reduced cerebral blood flow in the cohort "Men born in 1914"

BACKGROUND:

“Men born in 1914” is a population-based cohort study of the epidemiology of cardiovascular and cerebral disease. Little is known about how diurnal variation in blood pressure (BP) levels influence cerebral perfusion in very elderly populations.

OBJECTIVES:

To study the association between systolic (SBP) and diastolic BP (DBP) levels, during the day and at night, expressed through 24 h ambulatory BP monitoring (ABPM) and regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) disturbances.

METHODS:

A cross-sectional study from a population-based cohort of 108 men 81 years of age (born in 1914) was performed in an out-patient university clinic. Cerebral blood flow measurements using ^99mTc-hexamethylpropyleneamine oxime single photon emission computed tomography and 24 h ABPM were performed. Eleven men were excluded due to incomplete ABPM data.

RESULTS:

Mean DBP at night for each tertile was correlated to rCBF for the medial temporal right (P=0.012) and left (P=0.039) regions. Also, DBP during the day was correlated to the medial temporal right region (P=0.025). When analyses were stratified for DBP during the day, subjects with high DBP during the day (greater than 70 mmHg) showed a stronger association between low medial temporal right rCBF and low mean DBP at night (r=0.32, P=0.009) compared with subjects who had a lower daytime DBP. A corresponding positive correlation was noted for the medial temporal left region and daytime SBP, whereas a negative correlation was noted for frontal left region blood flow and SBP at night.

CONCLUSIONS:

A significant association was seen between low BP levels, especially at night, and rCBF in subjects with otherwise normal daytime DBP that may indicate a risk for nocturnal cerebral ischemia.     

Frontal MRI findings associated with impairment on the Executive Interview (EXIT25).

We examined the association between the Executive Interview (EXIT25), a bedside measure of executive control, and regional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) pathology among 52 consecutive geriatric patients presenting to a university dementia assessment clinic. Left frontal (p < .002), left medial (p < .03), right frontal (p < .02), and right medial (p < .02) cortical lesions significantly worsened EXIT25 scores, even after adjusting for age, global cognitive impairment (on the Mini-Mental State Examination), and the severity of cortical dementia on the Qualitative Evaluation of Dementia [QED]. The EXIT25's associations with right hemisphere lesions did not persist after adjusting for left frontal lesions. Left posterior lesions did not significantly affect the EXIT25. Similarly, left frontal circuit pathology worsened EXIT25 scores (p < .05). Pathology in left anterior subcortical structures showed a trend (p = .052). EXIT25 scores were not affected by right subcortical pathology, nor by pathology in either hippocampus. We conclude that the EXIT25 is specifically affected by frontal system MRI lesions, particularly on the left. This conclusion is consistent with earlier functional neuroimaging studies associating EXIT25 performance with left mesiofrontal perfusion.     

Decrease of regional cerebral blood flow in liver cirrhosis

OBJECTIVE: Alterations of regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in subjects with liver cirrhosis have not been fully evaluated. We evaluated quantitative changes in rCBF using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). METHODS: Twenty-eight Japanese patients with liver cirrhosis were enrolled in this study. None of them exhibited advanced hepatic encephalopathy at the time of examination. The cause of liver cirrhosis was viral infection in 26 patients; the cause was unknown in two patients. Child-Pugh classification of the patients was as follows: Group A, 12 patients; Group B, 12 patients; and Group C, four patients. The control group consisted of 25 age-matched healthy subjects. Radionuclide angiography was performed by rapid injection of Tc-99m ethyl cysteinate dimer (ECD) (740 MBq) via the right cubital vein, and then SPECT brain images were taken. Using the Patlak graphical method, rCBF values (ml/100 g per min) were calculated in the frontal, parietal, temporal and occipital lobes and cerebellum on SPECT images. RESULTS: The rCBF values were lower in cirrhotic patients than in controls, i.e. by 15% in the frontal lobe, by 12% in the parietal lobe, by 10% in the temporal and occipital lobes, and by 7% in the cerebellum. They decreased concomitantly with the severity of liver disease. A significant negative correlation was noted between rCBF values and Child-Pugh score in the frontal (P<0.01), parietal (P<0.05) and occipital lobes (P<0.01). rCBF values of each region were not correlated with age or with results of neuropsychological test. The degree of association between rCBF values and results of laboratory examination was generally poor. CONCLUSION: Patients with liver cirrhosis without advanced encephalopathy showed widespread reduction in rCBF; this reduction was particularly evident in the frontal lobe. Tc-99m ECD SPECT may be useful for evaluating cerebral functional changes in patients with liver cirrhosis.