To date, numerous studies have investigated the brain white matter abnormality in patients with alcohol dependence using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). DTI has been primarily utilized to evaluate white matter integrity, it is now increasingly used to investigate microstructural changes of gray matter (GM), particularly the subcortical GM. We predicted that structural alterations may not only be restricted to the white matter but also found in subcortical GM in alcohol dependent patients (ADP). Possible relationships between brain microstructure assessed by magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and brain volumes were investigated in ADP. Diffusion and volumetric analyses were performed in 21 alcohol dependent men without neurological or somatic complications and in 21 healthy men. Raw volume and DTI parameters (i.e., fractional anisotropy, and diffusivity values) of six subcortical gray matter structures (amygdala, hippocampus, caudate, pallidum, putamen, thalamus) were measured in both hemispheres. Between-group (controls versus patients) comparisons of normalized volume, DTI parameters, as well as within-group correlation analyses between structural changes and clinical variables were carried out. Our results show that DTI measurements appear more sensitive than volume measurements, but the combination of the two methods can still be useful for detecting pathological changes. Major findings are change of macrostructures in left hippocampus and bilateral putamen and thalamus. ADP group exhibited significant volume reductions and change of microstructures in caudate and hippocampus, putamen. These findings can broaden our understanding of the neuroanatomical changes underlying ADP.

中文翻译：

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酒精依赖患者皮质下灰质的弥散张量成像分析

迄今为止，许多研究已经使用弥散张量成像 (DTI) 调查了酒精依赖患者的脑白质异常。DTI 主要用于评估白质完整性，现在越来越多地用于研究灰质 (GM)，特别是皮层下 GM 的微观结构变化。我们预测结构改变可能不仅限于白质，而且在酒精依赖患者 (ADP) 的皮层下 GM 中也发现。在 ADP 中研究了通过磁共振扩散张量成像 (DTI) 评估的大脑微观结构与大脑体积之间的可能关系。对 21 名没有神经或躯体并发症的酒精依赖男性和 21 名健康男性进行了扩散和体积分析。原始体积和 DTI 参数（即 在两个半球测量了六个皮质下灰质结构（杏仁核、海马、尾状核、苍白球、壳核、丘脑）的各向异性分数和扩散率值。进行了标准化体积、DTI 参数以及结构变化和临床变量之间的组内相关性分析的组间（对照与患者）比较。我们的结果表明 DTI 测量似乎比体积测量更敏感，但两种方法的组合仍然可用于检测病理变化。主要发现是左侧海马体和双侧壳核和丘脑宏观结构的变化。ADP 组表现出显着的体积减少和尾状核和海马、壳核的微观结构变化。