T 1 and T 2 relaxation times from substantia nigra in parkinson's disease and control

Abstract

The diagnosis of Parkinson's disease, and also other neurodegenerative disorders, is based on clinical examination. Many attempts are undertaken to find a test that could confirm this clinical diagnosis. Many hopes were attributed to magnetic resonance imaging but its importance remains obscure. The aim of this study was to compare T1 and T2 relaxation times from substantia nigra of patients with clinical diagnosis of Parkinson's disease and age-matched controls. A decrease of T2 (54:5 ± 1:4 ms vs. 58:0 ± 1:5 ms) in Parkinson's disease vs. control was found with confidence level of 5%. T1 did not dier significantly between Parkinson's disease and control (624 ± 17 ms vs. 614 ± 21 ms).