Differential influences of rest tremor on brain fiber architecture in essential tremor and Parkinson's disease

Xiaojie Duanmu; Jiaqi Wen; Jianmei Qin; Sijia Tan; Chenqing Wu; Weijin Yuan; Qianshi Zheng; Cheng Zhou; Haoting Wu; Jingwen Chen; Shuyue Wang; Hui Hong; Tao Guo; Jingjing Wu; Bingting Zhu; Yuelin Fang; Yaping Yan; Guohua Zhao; Baorong Zhang; Minming Zhang; Xiaojun Guan; Xiaojun Xu

doi:10.1016/j.parkreldis.2024.106559

Differential influences of rest tremor on brain fiber architecture in essential tremor and Parkinson's disease

Parkinsonism Relat Disord. 2024 Mar 16:123:106559. doi: 10.1016/j.parkreldis.2024.106559. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Xiaojie Duanmu¹, Jiaqi Wen¹, Jianmei Qin¹, Sijia Tan¹, Chenqing Wu¹, Weijin Yuan¹, Qianshi Zheng¹, Cheng Zhou¹, Haoting Wu¹, Jingwen Chen¹, Shuyue Wang¹, Hui Hong¹, Tao Guo¹, Jingjing Wu¹, Bingting Zhu², Yuelin Fang², Yaping Yan², Guohua Zhao³, Baorong Zhang², Minming Zhang¹, Xiaojun Guan⁴, Xiaojun Xu⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Zhejiang, China; Joint Laboratory of Clinical Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.
² Department of Neurology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Zhejiang, China.
³ Department of Neurology, The Fourth Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Zhejiang, China.
⁴ Department of Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Zhejiang, China; Joint Laboratory of Clinical Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China. Electronic address: xiaojunguan1102@zju.edu.cn.
⁵ Department of Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Zhejiang, China; Joint Laboratory of Clinical Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China. Electronic address: xxjmailbox@zju.edu.cn.

PMID: 38513448
DOI: 10.1016/j.parkreldis.2024.106559

Abstract

Background: Rest tremor is a movement disorder commonly found in diseases like Parkinson's disease (PD) and essential tremor (ET). Rest tremor typically shows slower progression in PD, but more severe progression in ET. However, the underlying white matter organization of rest tremor behind PD and ET remains unclear.

Methods: This study included 57 ET patients (40 without rest tremor (ETWR), 17 with rest tremor (ETRT)), 68 PD patients (34 without rest tremor (PDWR), 34 with rest tremor (PDRT)), and 62 normal controls (NC). Fixel-based analysis was used to evaluate the structural changes of white matter in rest tremor in these different diseases.

Results: The fiber-bundle cross-section (FC) of the right non-decussating dentato-rubro-thalamic tract and several fibers outside the dentato-rubro-thalamic pathway in ETWR were significantly higher than that in NC. The fiber density and cross-section of the left nigro-pallidal in PDWR is significantly lower than that in NC, while the FC of bilateral nigro-pallidal in PDRT is significantly lower than that in NC.

Conclusion: ET patients with pure action tremor showed over-activation of fiber tracts. However, when superimposed with rest tremor, ET patients no longer exhibited over-activation of fiber tracts, but rather showed a trend of fiber tract damage. Except for the nigro-pallidal degeneration in all PD, PDRT will not experience further deterioration in fiber organization. These results provide important insights into the unique effects of rest tremor on brain fiber architecture in ET and PD.

Keywords: Essential tremor; Fixel-based analysis; Parkinson's disease; Rest tremor.