Evaluation of the relationship between microstructural changes in the deep gray matter structures of the brain and clinical disability in MS patients with diffusion tensor mr imaging method

Purpose: To evaluate the detection of microstructural changes in deep gray matter structures with DTI in MS patients and its relationship with the level of disability. Materials and Methods: Between 2018 and 2020, images of 65 patients with a diagnosis of MS, MRI and EDSS score calculations were retrospectively analyzed. OD, FA, RD and AD values were obtained from thalamus, putamen, globus pallidus and caudate nuclei in both hemispheres and corpus callosum splenium and genu were statistically analyzed. The relationship between these data and EDSS scores was examined. In addition, the patients were divided into two groups with an EDSS score of less than 6 (group 1) and those with an EDSS score of 6 and above (group 2) and the difference between the groups was analyzed. Results: A low degree positive correlation was found between EDSS scores and globus pallidus OD and AD values. There was no correlation between other parameters and EDSS scores. There was no difference in DTG parameters between the groups. Conclusion: In this study, although a low degree correlation was found between EDSS scores and globus pallidus OD and AD values, no difference was found between high and low levels of disability. Other studies in the literature have different results in terms of the relationship between DTI data and the level of disability. Although DTG is an effective method to show microstructural changes and damage in the brain, our results and other results in the literature the level of disability in MS patients and suggest that the method is not yet sufficient for grading.