MRI Study of Cerebral Cortical Thickness in Patients with Herpes Zoster and Postherpetic Neuralgia

Abstract

Xian Liu,1,* Lili Gu,2,* Jiaqi Liu,3 Shunda Hong,1 Qing Luo,1 Ying Wu,1 Jiaojiao Yang,1 Jian Jiang1 1Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Pain, The First Affiliated Hospital, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Radiology, The Jiangxi Provincial People’s Hospital, Nanchang, Jiangxi, 330006, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Jian Jiang, Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Nanchang University, 17 Yongwaizheng Street, Nanchang, 330006, Jiangxi, People’s Republic of China, Tel [phone], Email [email protected]: To measure the changes in cerebral cortical thickness in patients with herpes zoster (HZ) and postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) by surface-based morphometry (SBM) and further estimate its correlation with clinical scores.Materials and Methods: Twenty-nine HZ patients, 30 PHN patients and 30 well-matched healthy controls (HCs) were included. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data from all subjects were collected and then analyzed by SBM. The changes in cortical thickness among the HZ, PHN and HC groups were analyzed by ANOVA and correlated with clinical scores.Results: The thickness of the bilateral primary visual cortex (V1, V2) and right primary visual cortex (V3), left somatosensory cortex (L3A), right anterior cingulate gyrus and medial prefrontal cortex (RS32) increased in PHN group, and the thickness the left insular and frontal opercular cortex (LFOP4), left motor cortex (L3B), and right superior temporal visual cortex (RSTV) were decreased in the HZ and PHN groups compared to the HC group. The thickness measurements of RS32, LFOP4, and (L3B) in HZ and PHN patients were correlated with the duration of disease. In HZ and PHN patients, the Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA) and Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD) scores were significantly positively correlated.Conclusion: Changes in cortical thickness in the areas related to sensory, motor, and cognitive/emotional changes in patients with PHN affect the neuroplasticity process of the brain, which may be the reason for the transformation of HZ into PHN and provide a possible explanation for the neuropathological mechanism of pain persistence in PHN patients.Keywords: postherpetic neuralgia, PHN, neuropathic pain, cortical thickness, surface-based morphometry, SBM

Keywords

• postherpetic neuralgia (phn)
• neuropathic pain
• cortical thickness
• surface-based morphometry (sbm)