TY - JOUR

T1 - Microstate Changes Associated With Alzheimer’s Disease in Persons With Down Syndrome

AU - Musaeus, Christian Sandøe

AU - Salem, Lise Cronberg

AU - Kjaer, Troels Wesenberg

AU - Waldemar, Gunhild

PY - 2019/11/28

Y1 - 2019/11/28

N2 - Down syndrome (DS) is associated with development of dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease (AD). However, due to considerable heterogeneity in intellectual function among persons with DS, it is difficult to assess whether a person with DS has developed dementia due to AD (DS-AD). EEG spectral power has previously shown very promising results with increased slowing in DS-AD compared to DS. However, another technique called microstates may be used to assess whole-brain dynamics and has to our knowledge not previously been investigated in either DS or DS-AD. The aim of the current study was to assess whether microstates could be used to differentiate between adults with DS, and DS-AD. We included EEGs from 10 persons with DS and 15 persons with DS-AD in the analysis. For the microstate analyses, we calculated four global maps, which were then back-fitted to all the EEGs. Lastly, we extracted the duration, occurrence, and coverage for each of the microstates. Here, we found the four archetypical maps as has previously been reported in the literature. We did not find any significant difference between DS and DS-AD but the largest difference in microstate duration between DS and DS-AD was found in microstate A and D. These findings are in line with structural MR studies showing that both the frontal and temporal lobes are affected in persons with DS-AD. Microstates may potentially serve as a diagnostic marker, but larger studies are needed to confirm these findings.

AB - Down syndrome (DS) is associated with development of dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease (AD). However, due to considerable heterogeneity in intellectual function among persons with DS, it is difficult to assess whether a person with DS has developed dementia due to AD (DS-AD). EEG spectral power has previously shown very promising results with increased slowing in DS-AD compared to DS. However, another technique called microstates may be used to assess whole-brain dynamics and has to our knowledge not previously been investigated in either DS or DS-AD. The aim of the current study was to assess whether microstates could be used to differentiate between adults with DS, and DS-AD. We included EEGs from 10 persons with DS and 15 persons with DS-AD in the analysis. For the microstate analyses, we calculated four global maps, which were then back-fitted to all the EEGs. Lastly, we extracted the duration, occurrence, and coverage for each of the microstates. Here, we found the four archetypical maps as has previously been reported in the literature. We did not find any significant difference between DS and DS-AD but the largest difference in microstate duration between DS and DS-AD was found in microstate A and D. These findings are in line with structural MR studies showing that both the frontal and temporal lobes are affected in persons with DS-AD. Microstates may potentially serve as a diagnostic marker, but larger studies are needed to confirm these findings.

KW - Alzheimer’s disease

KW - diagnostic

KW - Down syndrome

KW - EEG

KW - microstates

U2 - 10.3389/fnins.2019.01251

DO - 10.3389/fnins.2019.01251

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 31849579

AN - SCOPUS:85076910664

VL - 13

JO - Frontiers in Neuroscience

JF - Frontiers in Neuroscience

SN - 1662-4548

M1 - 1251

ER -