Association Between Substantia Nigra Hyperechogenicity and Central Macular Thickness in Parkinson's Disease.
Substantia nigra hyperechogenicity is associated with a thinner central macula in Parkinson's disease.
Association Between Substantia Nigra Hyperechogenicity and Central Macular Thickness in Parkinson's Disease.
This study investigates the correlation between substantia nigra (substantia nigra) hyperechogenicity, detected via transcranial sonography (transcranial sonography), and retinal thinning in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD).
In this cross-sectional study, 86 PD patients (172 eyes) underwent clinical assessment (UPDRS, Hoehn-Yahr), transcranial sonography for substantia nigra area measurement, and optical coherence tomography (optical coherence tomography) for retinal nerve fiber layer (retinal nerve fiber layer), ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer (ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer), and macular thickness analysis.
PD patients exhibited significant thinning of the ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer, average retinal nerve fiber layer, and central macular thickness compared to healthy controls ( p < 0.001 in all instances).
Pathological substantia nigra hyperechogenicity (>0.19 cm 2 ) was detected in 85.9% of patients with a preserved temporal bone window (71 out of 86).
Patients with pathological substantia nigra findings had a significantly thinner central macula ( p = 0.006) compared to those with a normal substantia nigra, while no significant correlations were observed between the substantia nigra area and retinal nerve fiber layer or ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer.
These findings demonstrate a specific correlation between substantia nigra hyperechogenicity and central macular thinning.
While retinal nerve fiber layer and ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer effectively differentiate PD from controls, the central macula might serve as a promising biomarker candidate reflecting substantia nigra changes.
Further longitudinal studies are required to evaluate the role of these combined markers in the PD diagnostic algorithm.