Chapter 11 - Dystonia

Summary

This chapter focuses on various functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), voxel-based morphometry (VBM), and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) studies in patients with (focal) dystonia, which have shown functional and structural changes within subcortical-cortical sensorimotor networks. An important role of a dysfunction of somatosensory processing has been more and more recognized over the past years and has become one of the main focuses of research in dystonia. One important issue when investigating the somatosensory system with fMRI is the standardization of sensory stimuli. Resting-state fMRI studies of patients with action-induced dystonia can further add to the understanding of the disorder. A recent resting-state MRI study investigated patients with writer's cramp (WC) and applied independent component analyses (ICA) to study functional connectivity of different functional networks at rest. Based on possible genetic predisposition these functional and structural changes could lead to the clinical presentation of dedifferentiated motor programs in dystonia.