Category: MSA, PSP, CBS: Neuroimaging
Objective: During deep brain stimulation (DBS), the surgical planning software Elements can automatically identify deep brain structures and calculate their volumes. This procedure is straightforward and accessible.
Background: The objective of this study was to determine whether Parkinson’s disease (PD) and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) can be distinguished based on the volumes of the subthalamic nucleus (STN), nucleus basalis of Meynert (NBM), globus pallidus internus (GPi), globus pallidus externus (GPe), red nucleus (RN), and putamen (Put) calculated using Elements.
Method: We evaluated 11 consecutive patients with PSP, 17 with PD, and 17 normal controls who underwent 3D-FLAIR MRI. The volumes of each structure were calculated from the 3D-FLAIR images using Elements. Statistical analysis included analysis of variance (ANOVA) and post-hoc Bonferroni analysis.
Results: There were no significant differences in mean age (67.2 ± 6.3 years for controls, 68.4 ± 11.8 for PD, and 72.1 ± 8.8 for PSP; p = 0.387) or disease duration (p = 0.494). However, the Hoehn and Yahr (HY) stage differed significantly between PD (2.5 ± 0.9) and PSP (3.5 ± 0.3; p = 0.025).
ANOVA revealed significant differences in the volumes of the left GPi, left GPe, right GPe, left NBM, right NBM, left STN, and right STN (p < 0.05). The PSP group exhibited the smallest volumes across these nuclei. Post-hoc analysis showed significant differences between PD and PSP in the left GPi, left GPe, right GPe, and left NBM (p = 0.004, 0.027, 0.006, 0.034). No significant differences were observed between normal controls and PD.
Conclusion: Volumetric analysis revealed that the PSP group had the smallest volumes in the GPi, GPe, NBM, and STN, consistent with known pathological patterns of severe atrophy in these regions for PSP. Elements is a highly useful diagnostic support tool due to its fully automated, bias-free nature, and compatibility with multiple MRI modalities (T1WI, T2WI, and FLAIR).
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
K. Matsuura, A. Nishigaki, S. Horie, K. Sakae, T. Utsunomiya, K. Miyashita, K. Tabei, A. Shindo. Can Parkinson’s Disease and Progressive Supranuclear Palsy be Distinguished Using Surgical Planning Image Analysis Software? [abstract]. Mov Disord. 2026; 41 (suppl 1). https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/can-parkinsons-disease-and-progressive-supranuclear-palsy-be-distinguished-using-surgical-planning-image-analysis-software/. Accessed October 1, 2026.« Back to 2026 International Congress
MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/can-parkinsons-disease-and-progressive-supranuclear-palsy-be-distinguished-using-surgical-planning-image-analysis-software/