Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33647059›Full record

ArticlePloS one2021

Measurement of the adult human midbrain with transcranial ultrasound.

Karl Aoun, Kay L Double, Verity Pearson-Dennett, Rezzak Yilmaz, Daniela Berg, Gabrielle Todd

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
0.9field-weighted citation impact, top 24% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 10 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Observational
  4. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Karl AounBrain and Mind Centre and Discipline of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine and Health, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Kay L DoubleBrain and Mind Centre and Discipline of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine and Health, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Verity Pearson-DennettUniSA Clinical and Health Sciences and Alliance for Research in Exercise, Nutrition and Activity (ARENA), University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA, Australia.
Rezzak YilmazKlinik für Neurologie, UKSH, Campus Kiel, Christian-Albrechts-Universität, Kiel, Germany.
Daniela BergKlinik für Neurologie, UKSH, Campus Kiel, Christian-Albrechts-Universität, Kiel, Germany.
Gabrielle ToddUniSA Clinical and Health Sciences and Alliance for Research in Exercise, Nutrition and Activity (ARENA), University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA, Australia.ORCID 0000-0002-2465-6026
Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel · DEThe University of Sydney · AUUniversity of South Australia · AU

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundTranscranial sonography is increasingly used to aid clinical diagnoses of movement disorders, for example, to identify an enlarged area of substantia nigra echogenicity in patients with Parkinson's disease.

objectiveThe current study investigated characteristics of the midbrain at the anatomical plane for quantification of substantia nigra echogenicity.

methodsArea of substantia nigra echogenicity, cross-sectional area of the midbrain, and interpeduncular angle were quantified in two groups of adults aged 18-50 years: 47 healthy non-drug-using controls (control group) and 22 individuals with a history of methamphetamine use (methamphetamine group), a cohort with a high prevalence of enlarged substantia nigra echogenicity and thus risk of Parkinson's disease.

resultsIn the control group, cross-sectional area of the midbrain (4.47±0.44 cm2) and interpeduncular angle were unaffected by age, sex, or image acquisition side. In the methamphetamine group, cross-sectional midbrain area (4.72±0.60 cm2) and area of substantia nigra echogenicity were enlarged compared to the control group, and the enlargement was sex-dependent (larger in males than females). Whole midbrain area and interpeduncular angle were found to be weak predictors of area of substantia nigra echogenicity after accounting for group and sex.

conclusionsHistory of methamphetamine use is associated with an enlarged midbrain and area of substantia nigra echogenicity, and the abnormality is more pronounced in males than females. Thus, males may be more susceptible to methamphetamine-induced changes to the brainstem, and risk of Parkinson's disease, than females.

Indexed as

Ultrasonography, Doppler, TranscranialAdolescentAdultAmphetamine-Related DisordersFemaleHumansMaleMesencephalonMethamphetamineMiddle AgedParkinson DiseaseSubstantia NigraYoung AdultMethamphetamine

Identifiers

PMID33647059
PMCPMC7920378
OpenAlexW3134233772

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.