Brain Micro-Structural and Functional Alterations for Cognitive Function Prediction in the End-Stage Renal Disease Patients

The goal of this study was to investigate the relationships of altered brain micro-structure and function, and cognitive function for ESRD patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis. Specifically, diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI), the resting-state functional connectivity (FC) algorithm, and the least squares support vector regression machine (LSSVRM) were utilized to conduct our study. Brain micro-structural and functional changes were found in ESRD patients, which may account for the onset of cognitive impairment in affected patients. These quantitative parameters combined with our optimized prediction model may be helpful to establish reliable imaging markers to detect and monitor cognitive impairment associated with ESRD.