Cortical thickness changes in adult moyamoya disease assessed by structural magnetic resonance imaging

Abstract Purpose To characterize the changes in cortical thickness of adult patients with moyamoya disease (MMD). Methods 60 patients with MMD and 60 age and sex-matched healthy volunteers were recruited. Structural images were acquired by MRI. Freesurfer was used to measure cortical thickness in patients and controls, and this was compared with MRA scores and cerebrovascular accident (CVA) scores. Results Compared with controls, the average cortical thickness of both cerebral hemispheres was lower in patients than in controls and symmetrical differences were seen in the regional cortex: bilateral precentral gyri were thinner, bilateral postcentral gyri and posterior cingulate gyri were thicker, and thinning and thickening were both found in the insula. CVA scores were negatively correlated with the average cortical thicknesses. Conclusions Cortical thickness can be used as a biological indicator to assess the severity of MMD.