Caudate structural abnormalities in idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus.

BACKGROUND - Idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) is a reversible dementia in which fronto-striatal cognitive deficits and apathy may be present. OBJECTIVES - The study investigated structural volumetric changes in iNPH, apart from ventriculomegaly. MATERIALS AND METHODS - A full-brain voxel-based morphometric analysis between 11 iNPH patients and 14 healthy controls identified regions of interest (ROIs) for manual volumetric analyses. RESULTS - Caudate and corpus callosum ROI measurements revealed diminished caudate nuclei volume in the iNPH group. CONCLUSIONS - The role of the caudate nucleus in cognitive and affective changes in iNPH should now be explored.