Brain activation study during urine withhold by ~(99)Tc~m-HMPAO SPECT brain imaging

Objective Lose of urinary continence control is related with the pathological process of many brain damages.The aim of this study was to identify cerebral activation areas during withholding mine in healthy subjects with cerebral perfusion agent[~(99)Tc~m-hexamethylpropylene amine oxime(HMPAO)].Methods Fifteen right-handed healthy male volunteers(age ranged 24 to 45 years old)was recruited.All had two brain perfusion SPECT scans(15 volunteers with 30 scans).One was at resting state with empty bladder and the other was at urine withholding state with full bladder.The images were analyzed by neurological statistical image analysis software(NEUROSTAT)and was displayed on Z-score images at a significance threshold of P0.05 with correction for multiple comparisons.Results As compared with resting,the urine with- holding state showed a significant increase cerebral perfusion in bilateral inferior frontal gyri,the right supe- rior and middle temporal gyri,with the most significant in the right inferior frontal gyrus.Conclusions Al- though the control of urinary continence in healthy men was associated with bilateral inferior frontal gyri and the right superior and middle temporal gyri,the results showed that the right inferior frontal gyrus might also be important.Moreover,the combination of brain perfusion SPECT and NEUROSTAT was a rather easy method for further understanding the mechanism of urinary control in brain and could be popularized as a re- search tool for clinical use.