Analysis of hippocampal subfields in sickle cell disease using ultrahigh field MRI

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is an inherited hemoglobinopathy that causes organ dysfunction, including cerebral vasculopathy and neurological complications. Hippocampal segmentation with newer and advanced 7 Tesla (7T) MRI protocols has revealed atrophy in specific subregions in other neurodegenerative and neuroinflammatory diseases, however, there is limited evidence of hippocampal involvement in SCD. Thus, we explored whether SCD may be also associated with abnormalities in hippocampal subregions. We conducted 7T MRI imaging in individuals with SCD, including the HbSS, HbSC and HbS/beta thalassemia genotypes (n = 53), and healthy race and age-matched controls (n = 47), using a customized head coil. Both T1- and T2-weighted images were used for automatic segmentation of the hippocampal subfields. Individuals with SCD had, on average, significantly smaller volume of the region including the Dentate Gyrus and Cornu Ammonis (CA) 2 and 3 as compared to the control group. Other hippocampal subregions also showed a trend towards smaller volumes in the SCD group. These findings support and extend previous reports of reduced volume in the temporal lobe in SCD patients. Further studies are necessary to investigate the mechanisms that lead to structural changes in the hippocampus subfields and their relationship with cognitive performance in SCD patients.