Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35294697›Full record

ArticleGeroScience2022

Investigating the contribution of white matter hyperintensities and cortical thickness to empathy in neurodegenerative and cerebrovascular diseases.

Miracle Ozzoude, Brenda Varriano, Derek Beaton, Joel Ramirez, Melissa F Holmes, Christopher J M Scott, Fuqiang Gao, Kelly M Sunderland, Paula McLaughlin, Jennifer Rabin and 41 more

Open access · greenAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in GeroScience, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing papers in PubMed
0.7field-weighted citation impact, top 35% 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

7 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Empathy in primary progressive aphasia: Neural signatures and longitudinal trajectories.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. Loss of empathy in stroke.Frontiers in psychology · 2024
    Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
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

51 authors at 15 institutions in 3 countries.

Miracle OzzoudeTanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Krembil Discovery Tower, 60 Leonard Avenue, 6th floor 6KD-407, Toronto, ON, M5T 0S8, Canada.
Brenda VarrianoTanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Krembil Discovery Tower, 60 Leonard Avenue, 6th floor 6KD-407, Toronto, ON, M5T 0S8, Canada.
Derek BeatonRotman Research Institute of Baycrest Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Joel RamirezL.C. Campbell Cognitive Neurology Unit, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Melissa F HolmesL.C. Campbell Cognitive Neurology Unit, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Christopher J M ScottL.C. Campbell Cognitive Neurology Unit, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Fuqiang GaoL.C. Campbell Cognitive Neurology Unit, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Kelly M SunderlandRotman Research Institute of Baycrest Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Paula McLaughlinNova Scotia Health and Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada.
Jennifer RabinHurvitz Brain Sciences Research Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Maged GoubranHurvitz Brain Sciences Research Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Donna KwanCentre for Neuroscience Studies, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
Angela RobertsRoxelyn and Richard Pepper Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA.
Robert BarthaRobarts Research Institute, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
Sean SymonsHurvitz Brain Sciences Research Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Brian TanRotman Research Institute of Baycrest Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Richard H SwartzHurvitz Brain Sciences Research Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Agessandro AbrahaoHurvitz Brain Sciences Research Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Gustavo SaposnikLi Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael's Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Mario MasellisDivision of Neurology, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Anthony E LangDivision of Neurology, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Connie MarrasDivision of Neurology, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Lorne ZinmanHurvitz Brain Sciences Research Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Christen ShoesmithDepartment of Clinical Neurological Sciences, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
Michael BorrieSchulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
Corinne E FischerKeenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Andrew FrankDepartment of Medicine (Neurology), University of Ottawa Brain and Mind Research Institute and Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
Morris FreedmanRotman Research Institute of Baycrest Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Manuel Montero-OdassoSchulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
Sanjeev KumarDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Stephen PasternakDepartment of Clinical Neurological Sciences, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
Stephen C StrotherRotman Research Institute of Baycrest Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Bruce G PollockDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Tarek K RajjiDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Dallas SeitzCumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
David F Tang-WaiDivision of Neurology, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
John TurnbullFaculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
Dar DowlatshahiDepartment of Medicine (Neurology), University of Ottawa Brain and Mind Research Institute and Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
Ayman HassanThunder Bay Regional Health Research Institute, Thunder Bay, ON, Canada.
Leanne CasaubonDivision of Neurology, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Jennifer MandziaDepartment of Clinical Neurological Sciences, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
Demetrios SahlasFaculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
David P BreenCentre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
David GrimesDepartment of Medicine (Neurology), University of Ottawa Brain and Mind Research Institute and Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
Mandar JogDepartment of Clinical Neurological Sciences, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
Thomas D L SteevesDivision of Neurology, Department of Medicine, St. Michael's Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Stephen R ArnottRotman Research Institute of Baycrest Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Sandra E BlackL.C. Campbell Cognitive Neurology Unit, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Elizabeth FingerDepartment of Clinical Neurological Sciences, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
ONDRI Investigators
Maria Carmela TartagliaTanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Krembil Discovery Tower, 60 Leonard Avenue, 6th floor 6KD-407, Toronto, ON, M5T 0S8, Canada. carmela.tartaglia@uhn.ca.ORCID 0000-0002-5944-8497
Sunnybrook Health Science Centre · CAWestern University · CABaycrest Hospital · CASt. Michael's Hospital · CAUniversity Health Network · CAUniversity of Toronto · CAMcMaster University · CAUniversity of Ottawa · CACentre for Addiction and Mental Health · CANorthwestern University · USQueen's University · CADalhousie University · CAMRC Centre for Regenerative Medicine · GBThunder Bay Regional Research Institute · CAUniversity of Calgary · CA

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Change in empathy is an increasingly recognised symptom of neurodegenerative diseases and contributes to caregiver burden and patient distress. Empathy impairment has been associated with brain atrophy but its relationship to white matter hyperintensities (WMH) is unknown. We aimed to investigate the relationships amongst WMH, brain atrophy, and empathy deficits in neurodegenerative and cerebrovascular diseases. Five hundred thirteen participants with Alzheimer's disease/mild cognitive impairment, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, frontotemporal dementia (FTD), Parkinson's disease, or cerebrovascular disease (CVD) were included. Empathy was assessed using the Interpersonal Reactivity Index. WMH were measured using a semi-automatic segmentation and FreeSurfer was used to measure cortical thickness. A heterogeneous pattern of cortical thinning was found between groups, with FTD showing thinning in frontotemporal regions and CVD in left superior parietal, left insula, and left postcentral. Results from both univariate and multivariate analyses revealed that several variables were associated with empathy, particularly cortical thickness in the fronto-insulo-temporal and cingulate regions, sex (female), global cognition, and right parietal and occipital WMH. Our results suggest that cortical atrophy and WMH may be associated with empathy deficits in neurodegenerative and cerebrovascular diseases. Future work should consider investigating the longitudinal effects of WMH and atrophy on empathy deficits in neurodegenerative and cerebrovascular diseases.

Indexed as

Cerebrovascular DisordersFrontotemporal DementiaWhite MatterAtrophyEmpathyFemaleHumansCerebrovascular diseaseCortical thicknessEmpathyNeurodegenerative diseaseSocial cognitionWhite matter hyperintensities

Identifiers

PMID35294697
PMCPMC9213606
OpenAlexW4220682365

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

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.