Lateralization of cerebral blood flow in the auditory cortex of patients with idiopathic tinnitus and healthy controls: An arterial spin labeling study

Xiaoshuai Li; Yansheng Zhao; Ying Hui; Yuntao Wu; Qian Chen; Huijing Shi; Han Lv; Mengning Li; Pengfei Zhao; Wenfei Zhang; Xinyu Zhao; Jing Li; Liufu Cui; Zhenchang Wang

doi:10.3389/fnins.2022.992758

Lateralization of cerebral blood flow in the auditory cortex of patients with idiopathic tinnitus and healthy controls: An arterial spin labeling study

Front Neurosci. 2022 Dec 7:16:992758. doi: 10.3389/fnins.2022.992758. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Xiaoshuai Li¹, Yansheng Zhao², Ying Hui¹, Yuntao Wu³, Qian Chen¹, Huijing Shi⁴, Han Lv¹, Mengning Li², Pengfei Zhao¹, Wenfei Zhang², Xinyu Zhao⁵, Jing Li¹, Liufu Cui⁴, Zhenchang Wang¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Radiology, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
² Department of MRI Room, Kailuan General Hospital, Tangshan, Hebei, China.
³ Department of Cardiology, Kailuan General Hospital, Tangshan, Hebei, China.
⁴ Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Kailuan General Hospital, Tangshan, Hebei, China.
⁵ Clinical Epidemiology and Evidence-Based Medicine Unit, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.

Abstract

Objectives: To assess the lateralization of cerebral blood flow (CBF) in the auditory cortex of idiopathic tinnitus patients and healthy controls (HCs) using 3D pseudocontinuous arterial spin labeling (pcASL).

Methods: Thirty-six patients with idiopathic tinnitus and 43 sex- and age-matched HCs underwent 3D-pcASL scanning using a 3.0 T MRI system. For both groups, region of interest analysis was performed on the primary auditory cortex (PAC), auditory associative cortex (AAC), and secondary auditory cortex (SAC). The clinical data of all subjects were analyzed.

Results: In both tinnitus patients and HCs, CBF of the left PAC was significantly higher than that of the right (HCs: P = 0.02; patients: P = 0.043), but CBF of the right AAC and SAC was significantly higher than that of the left (AAC: HCs, P < 0.001; patients: P < 0.001. SAC: HCs, P < 0.001; patients: P = 0.001). Compared with HCs, tinnitus patients exhibited significantly higher CBF in the bilateral PAC (right: P = 0.008; left: P = 0.022). CBF in the left PAC was positively correlated with tinnitus severity (r = 0.399, P = 0.016).

Conclusion: This study confirms the asymmetry of the auditory cortex and investigates the underlying neuropathology of idiopathic tinnitus in terms of CBF.

Keywords: arterial spin labeling; auditory cortex; cerebral blood flow; lateralization; tinnitus.