Functional MRI investigation of brain functional connectivity in resting-state of Parkinson's disease patients

Objective To investigate the characteristics of brain functional connectivity in resting-state of Parkinson’s disease(PD) patients with functional MRI (fMRI). Methods Fourteen PD patients (PD group) and 14 matched controls underwent examination in resting-state with fMRI. Putamens of bilateral were the regions of interest, and the difference of PD patients between controls was analyzed with two-sample t test. Results Compared with controls, functional connectivity in resting-state of PD patients was abnormal, including decreased functional connectivity and increased functional connectivity. The brain area of decreased functional connectivity included medial prefrontal cortex, bilateral caudate head, left insula, left fusiform gyrus. The brain area of increased functional connectivity included bilateral cerebellar tonsil, bilateral lingual gyrus, bilateral middle temporal gyrus, right precentral gyrus, right superior frontal gyrus, right inferior frontal gyrus, right cingulate gyrus and left middle frontal gyrus. Conclusion The functional connectivity of PD patients is abnormal in resting state.