Eduardo Caverzasi1,2, Laura J. Julian3,
Mehul Sampat4, Patricia Katz3, Monica Bucci, Stefano
Bastianello2,5, Roland G. Henry6
1Department of Radiology
& Biomedical Imaging, UCSF, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United
States; 2Neuroradiology Department, IRCCS C . Mondino Neurological
Institute Foundation, Pavia, Italy; 3Department of Medicine, UCSF,
San Francisco; 4Department of Neurology, UCSF, San Francisco; 5University
of Pavia, Pavia, Italy; 6Graduate Group in Bioengineering, UCSF
Cognitive dysfunction is the most common neuropsychiatric manifestation in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), yet the underlying structural MRI correlates of cognitive dysfunction remain unclear. We investigated cortical thickness differences among SLE patients and healthy controls, and among SLE patients stratified by cognitive impairment status. Results showed no cortical thickness differences between SLE patients and controls, yet SLE patients with cognitive impairment bilaterally showed reduced cortical thickness in a number of regions when compared to cognitively intact SLE patients. These results suggest that cognitive impairment, even in the absence of other neurological syndromes, may be associated with underlying structural brain alterations.
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