Abstract #1979

White Matter Abnormalities in Tourette Syndrome Extend Beyond Motor Pathways

Irene Neuner^1,2, Yuliya Kupriyanova³, Tony Stcker^2,4, Oleg Posnansky², Marc Tittgemeyer³, Frank Schneider^1,4, N. J. Shah^2,5

¹Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany; ²Medical Imaging Physics, Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine - 4, Forschungszentrum Juelich, Juelich, Germany; ³Max-Planck-Institut fr Neurologische Forschung, Cologne, Germany; ⁴JARA Translational Brain Medicine, Germany; ⁵Department of Neurology,Faculty of Medicine, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany

White matter abnormalities in patients with Tourette syndrome are investigated using diffusion tensor imaging, Tract-Based Spatial Statistics and correlation analysis. Our results indicate that TS is not restricted to motor pathways alone but affects association fibres such as the inferior fronto-occipital fascicle, the superior longitudinal fascicle and fascicle uncinatus as well. The detected abnormalities in Tourette patients complement the idea of the developmental character of the disorder. They show a pathological pattern reaching beyond the corticospinal tract. The alteration pattern of decreased fractional anisotropy and increased radial diffusivity might indicate a deficit myelination as one pathophysiologic factor in Tourette.