Locus Coeruleus Degeneration in Essential Tremor With Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Neuromelanin MRI Study

• DOI: 10.1111/cns.70214
• Publication Date: 2025-01-08T09:49:16Z
• Authors: Yuelin Fang; Cheng Zhou; Bingting Zhu; Jiasi Liu; Sicheng Liu; Xiaojun Guan; Tao Guo; Xiaojun Xu; Minming Zhang; Jun Tian; Xinzhen Yin; Baorong Zhang; Guohua Zhao; Yaping Yan
• Keywords: Neuromelanin; Locus coeruleus; Cognitive Decline

ABSTRACT Objective Our aim was to research the neuromelanin‐sensitive magnetic resonance imaging (NM‐MRI) features of locus coeruleus (LC) in essential tremor (ET) patients various cognitive states and explore relationships between these cognition. Methods We recruited three groups participants, including 30 ET with mild impairment (ET‐MCI), 57 normal cognition (ET‐NC), 105 healthy controls (HCs). All participants underwent MRI scanning clinical evaluation. Through NM‐MRI images, we compared contrast‐to‐noise ratio LC (CNR ) evaluated CNR scales. Results Compared HCs, ET‐MCI had a substantially lower value ( p = 0.017). The ET‐NC intermediate that HCs. Furthermore, partial correlation analysis patients, controlling for age, gender, education level, showed higher values correlate better performance on Montreal assessment test trail making A. Conclusion degeneration may partially contribute decline, suggesting norepinephrine system deserves further mechanism decline as well development targeted drugs.