Comprehensive Analysis of Brain Volume in REM Sleep Behavior Disorder with Mild Cognitive Impairment

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Rémillard-Pelchat, David^{a; b} | Rahayel, Shady^{a; c} | Gaubert, Malo^{a; b} | Postuma, Ronald B.^{a; d; e} | Montplaisir, Jacques^{a; f} | Pelletier, Amélie^{a; e} | Monchi, Oury^{g; h} | Brambati, Simona Maria^{i; j} | Carrier, Julie^{a; i; j} | Gagnon, Jean-François^{a; b; i; *}

Affiliations: [a] Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, Centre Intégré Universitaire de Santé et de Services Sociaux du Nord-de-l’Île-de-Montréal –Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada | [b] Department of Psychology, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada | [c] Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada | [d] Department of Neurology, Montreal General Hospital, Montreal, Quebec, Canada | [e] Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada | [f] Department of Psychiatry, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada | [g] Department of Radiology, Radio-Oncology, and Nuclear Medicine, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada | [h] Departments of Clinical Neurosciences, Radiology, and Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada | [i] Research Centre, Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada | [j] Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Correspondence: [*] Correspondence to: Jean-François Gagnon, PhD, Centre d’Études Avancées en Médecine du Sommeil, CIUSSS-NÎM –Hôpital du Sacré-Cœur de Montréal, 5400 boul. Gouin Ouest, Montréal, Québec H4J 1C5, Canada. Tel.: +1 514 338 2693 Fax: +1 514 338 2531; E-mail: gagnon.jean-francois.2@uqam.ca.

Abstract: Background:Rapid-eye-movement sleep behavior disorder (RBD) is a major risk factor for Parkinson’s disease and dementia with Lewy bodies. More than a third of RBD patients have mild cognitive impairment (MCI), but their specific structural brain alterations remain poorly understood. Objective:This study aimed to investigate the local deformation and volume of gray and white matter tissue underlying MCI in RBD. Methods:Fifty-two idiopathic RBD patients, including 17 with MCI (33%), underwent polysomnography, neuropsychological, neurological, and magnetic resonance imaging assessments. MCI diagnosis was based on a subjective complaint, cognitive impairment on the neuropsychological battery, and preserved daily functioning. Forty-one controls were also included. Deformation-based morphometry (DBM), voxel-based morphometry (VBM), and regional volume analyses of the corpus callosum and cholinergic basal forebrain were performed. Multiple regression models were also computed using anatomical, cognitive (composite z scores), and motor parameters. Results:Globally, patients with MCI displayed a widespread pattern of local deformation and volume atrophy in the cortical (bilateral insula, cingulate cortex, precuneus, frontal, temporal and occipital regions, right angular gyrus, and mid-posterior segment of the corpus callosum) and subcortical (brainstem, corona radiata, basal ganglia, thalamus, amygdala, and right hippocampus) regions compared to patients without MCI (DBM) or controls (DBM and VBM). Moreover, brain deformation (DBM) in patients were associated with lower performance in attention and executive functions, visuospatial abilities, and higher motor symptoms severity. Conclusion:The present study identified novel brain structural alterations in RBD patients with MCI which correlated with poorer cognitive performance. These results are consistent with those reported in patients with synucleinopathies-related cognitive impairment.

Keywords: REM sleep behavior disorder, mild cognitive impairment, Parkinson’s disease/parkinsonism, dementia with Lewy bodies, magnetic resonance imaging

DOI: 10.3233/JPD-212691

Journal: Journal of Parkinson's Disease, vol. 12, no. 1, pp. 229-241, 2022