Neuropsychological and imaging profile of patients with Parkinson's disease and freezing of gait

Abstract Background Neuropsychological evaluation with advanced neuroimaging may be a useful tool to determine the anatomical substrates that play crucial role in freezing of gait (FOG) in patients with Parkinson's Disease (PD). Objectives To compare the cognitive profile and gray matter (GM) changes (using Voxel Based Morphometry – VBM) between patients with PD with and without FOG (FOG+ve and FOG−ve). Methods Seventeen FOG+ve (M:F = 11:6) and 21 FOG−ve (M:F = 11:10) were evaluated clinically and with a structured neuropsychological battery. All patients underwent 3 T MRI. In order to determine areas of GM atrophy, T1W volumetric MRI data of the two groups were compared using VBM and Statistical Parametric Mapping 8. Results The mean age of FOG+ve and FOG−ve patients were 56.9 ± 6.6 and 47.4 ± 9.1 years respectively. There was no significant difference in the duration (6.0 ± 4.9 vs 5.2 ± 3.5 years, p