Resting-State Functional MRI Approaches to Parkinsonisms and Related Dementia.

Abstract

Purpose of the review: In this review, we attempt to summarize the most updated studies that applied resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) in the field of Parkinsonisms and related dementia.

Recent findings: Over the past decades, increasing interest has emerged on investigating the presence and pathophysiology of cognitive symptoms in Parkinsonisms and their possible role as predictive biomarkers of neurodegenerative brain processes. In recent years, evidence has been provided, applying mainly three methodological approaches (i.e. seed-based, network-based and graph-analysis) on rs-fMRI data, with promising results. Neural correlates of cognitive impairment and dementia have been detected in patients with Parkinsonisms along the diseases course. Interestingly, early functional connectivity signatures were proposed to track and predict future progression of neurodegenerative processes. However, longitudinal studies are still sparce and further investigations are needed to overcome this knowledge gap.