The effect of levodopa on speech graphs in non-demented patients with multiple system atrophy and Parkinson's disease.

Research overview

The text below is the source article’s original abstract under a verified reuse license. cc by

BackgroundAn objective topological analysis for any arbitrary network was provided by graph theory, which was implemented to reveal topological properties of brain networks in a wide range of neurodegenerative diseases.ObjectivesTo investigate the difference of the topology of speech graphs among parkinsonian-type multiple system atrophy patients (MSA-P), idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD) patients, and healthy controls (HC). To explore the effect of levodopa on the topology of speech graphs in MSA-P and PD patients.MethodsWe applied a graph analysis of topology of speech graphs in MSA-P patients (N = 39), idiopathic PD patients (N = 51), and HC (N = 51). All participants were assessed by a well-established semantic fluency test (animal). Participants' verbal reactions were listed and represented as speech graphs with directionality.ResultsMSA-P patients mentioned more about their memory and remaining time than PD patients (p p p = 0.004; HC: p p = 0.007; HC: p p = 0.004; HC: p p = 0.002; HC: p r = 0.39, p = 0.017) and average shortest path (r = 0.38, p = 0.017) were obtained, suggesting that higher levodopa doses were associated with producing sparser and larger speech graphs in MSA-P patients. However, there was no significant correlation between levodopa equivalent daily dose and graph indices in PD patients.ConclusionMSA-P patients' speech graphs were denser and smaller than both PD patients and healthy adults. The graph analysis of semantic fluency can differentiate MSA-P from PD to some extent. Importantly, in MSA-P patients, the impaired speech topology can be partially restored by levodopa.

Related topics