Assessing Imaging as a Tool in Monitoring and Predicting the Progression of Parkinson Disease

The 800 early PD subjects in this study have already been evaluated clinically and have undergone longitudinal dopamine transporter (DAT) imaging with \[123I\] ß-CIT (baseline and 22 months). In Follow-up imaging will be performed at 24-month intervals (46 and 70 months following PRECEPT baseline). All scanning procedures will be performed at the Institute for Neurodegenerative Disorders (IND) using methods previously employed in the PRECEPT study. Subjects willing to participate will travel to New Haven for their 46-month imaging visit. At IND a study coordinator and a neurologist will evaluate all subjects. The coordinator and neurologist will discuss the study procedures and evaluate the patient for eligibility. Written informed consent for the study will be obtained prior to performing any study-related procedures. If eligible, participants will be injected with ß-CIT and 24 hours later an imaging procedure will be used to obtain pictures of brain activity using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). This 2-day procedure will be repeated at 70 months (following PRECEPT baseline).