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Frontal paralimbic network atrophy in very mild behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia
Seeley WW, Crawford R, Rascovsky K, Kramer JH, Weiner M, Miller BL, Gorno-Tempini ML.. Archives of neurology, 2008-02-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Background Behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD) strikes hardest at the frontal lobes, but the sites of earliest injury remain unclear. Objective To determine atrophy patterns in distinct clinical stages of bvFTD, testing the hypothesis that the mildest stage is restricted to frontal paralimbic cortex. Design A bvFTD cohort study. Setting University hospital dementia clinic. Participants Patients with bvFTD with Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) scale scores of 0.5 (n = 15), 1 (n = 15), or 2 to 3 (n = 15) age and sex matched to each other and to 45 healthy controls. Main outcome measures Magnetic resonance voxel-based morphometry estimated gray matter and white matter atrophy at each disease stage compared with controls. Results Patients with a CDR score of 0.5 had gray matter loss in frontal paralimbic cortices, but atrophy also involved a network of anterior cortical and subcortical regions. A CDR score of 1 showed more extensive frontal gray matter atrophy and white matter losses in corpus callosum and brainstem. A CDR score of 2 to 3 showed additional posterior insula, hippocampus, and parietal involvement, with white matter atrophy in presumed frontal projection fibers. Conclusions Very mild bvFTD targets a specific subset of frontal and insular regions. More advanced disease affects white matter and posterior gray matter structures densely interconnected with the sites of earliest injury.
Key findings
- Main outcome measures Magnetic resonance voxel-based morphometry estimated gray matter and white matter atrophy at each disease stage compared with controls.
- Results Patients with a CDR score of 0.5 had gray matter loss in frontal paralimbic cortices, but atrophy also involved a network of anterior cortical and subcortical regions.
Why it matters
In people with very mild behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia, the earliest shrinkage appeared in frontal and related brain regions. This describes where damage begins in this disease and does not test any treatment or cure.
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Study details
- Study designcohort study
- Participants15
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 63/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a cohort study following people over time. Scored zero for effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Archives of neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | Archives of Neurology: journal h-index 353 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 7 / 12 | A cohort study following people over time |
| Strength of evidence | 3 / 5 | Rated “moderate” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2008 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 1 / 4 | 15 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 6 / 7 | Cited 511 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 25.6 citations a year over 20 year(s) since 2008 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 11.5× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 4 / 6 | Cited by 31 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 59 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Maria Luisa Gorno‐Tempini: h-index 92 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University of California, San Francisco: institution h-index 1,915 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 0 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 1 institution(s) in 1 country — scores zero (affiliation lists can be incomplete) |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 18268196) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 63 / 100 | — |
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Read the original
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record names 7 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Seeley, W. W., Crawford, R., Rascovsky, K., Kramer, J. H., Weiner, M., Miller, B. L., et al. (2008). Frontal paralimbic network atrophy in very mild behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia. Archives of neurology. https://doi.org/10.1001/archneurol.2007.38
Vancouver
Seeley WW, Crawford R, Rascovsky K, Kramer JH, Weiner M, Miller BL, et al. Frontal paralimbic network atrophy in very mild behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia. Archives of neurology. 2008. doi:10.1001/archneurol.2007.38. PMID: 18268196.
BibTeX
@article{seeley2008-18268196,
author = {Seeley, W. W. and Crawford, R. and Rascovsky, K. and Kramer, J. H. and Weiner, M. and Miller, B. L. and Gorno-Tempini, M. L.},
title = {{Frontal paralimbic network atrophy in very mild behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia}},
journal = {Archives of neurology},
year = {2008},
doi = {10.1001/archneurol.2007.38},
pmid = {18268196},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1001/archneurol.2007.38}
}
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