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. 1988 Jan;51(1):94–104. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.51.1.94

Prefrontal cortical blood flow and cognitive function in Huntington's disease.

D R Weinberger 1, K F Berman 1, M Iadarola 1, N Driesen 1, R F Zec 1
PMCID: PMC1032719  PMID: 2965218

Abstract

To examine the relationship between cortical physiology and dementia in Huntington's disease, rCBF during three different behavioural conditions, one of which emphasised prefrontal cognition, was determined by xenon-133 inhalation in 14 patients with Huntington's disease and in matched controls. Cortical rCBF was not reduced in Huntington's disease patients even while they manifested overt prefrontal-type cognitive deficits. Caudate atrophy on CT and rCBF were significantly correlated, but only during the prefrontal behaviour where the correlation was positive. These results suggest a qualification of the subcortical dementia concept as applied to Huntington's disease and implicate an interaction between pathology that is subcortical and cognitive function that is cortical.

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