White matter hyperintensities and prepulse inhibition in a mixed elderly population

TY - JOUR

T1 - White matter hyperintensities and prepulse inhibition in a mixed elderly population

AU - Salem, Lise C

AU - Hejl, Anne-Mette

AU - Garde, Ellen

AU - Leffers, Anne Mette

AU - Paulson, Olaf B

AU - Waldemar, Gunhild

N1 - 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

PY - 2011/12/30

Y1 - 2011/12/30

N2 - Prepulse inhibition (PPI) of the startle response, a measure for sensorimotor gating, exhibits a relatively high inter-individual variability in elderly subjects. The aim of this study was to investigate whether white matter hyperintensities (WMH), frequently identified on cranial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in elderly subjects with and without cognitive impairment, may contribute to variations in PPI. A passive acoustic PPI paradigm was applied in 92 human subjects (53 healthy and 39 patients with Alzheimer's disease or mild cognitive impairment) between 60 and 85years of age. WMH were rated visually on craniel MRI FLAIR images using the Fazekas scale. WMH were identified in 70% of all subjects. The latency to peak of the startle response increased significantly with increasing WMH load, whereas the inhibition of the startle response (PPI) was neither significantly related to the degree of WMH nor to cognitive performance. We conclude that the presence of WMH in the fronto-striatal brain circuit may affect the latency of the startle response, but not information processing in elderly subjects.

AB - Prepulse inhibition (PPI) of the startle response, a measure for sensorimotor gating, exhibits a relatively high inter-individual variability in elderly subjects. The aim of this study was to investigate whether white matter hyperintensities (WMH), frequently identified on cranial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in elderly subjects with and without cognitive impairment, may contribute to variations in PPI. A passive acoustic PPI paradigm was applied in 92 human subjects (53 healthy and 39 patients with Alzheimer's disease or mild cognitive impairment) between 60 and 85years of age. WMH were rated visually on craniel MRI FLAIR images using the Fazekas scale. WMH were identified in 70% of all subjects. The latency to peak of the startle response increased significantly with increasing WMH load, whereas the inhibition of the startle response (PPI) was neither significantly related to the degree of WMH nor to cognitive performance. We conclude that the presence of WMH in the fronto-striatal brain circuit may affect the latency of the startle response, but not information processing in elderly subjects.

U2 - 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2011.07.007

DO - 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2011.07.007

M3 - Journal article

SN - 0165-1781

VL - 194

SP - 314

EP - 318

JO - Psychiatry Research

JF - Psychiatry Research

IS - 3

ER -