Abnormal orbitofrontal development due to prematurity

Giménez, Mónica; Junqué, Carme; Vendrell, Pere; Narberhaus, Ana; Bargalló, Núria; Botet, Francesc; Mercader, Josep M.

doi:10.1212/01.wnl.0000244485.51898.93

Cited by 64 publications

(70 citation statements)

References 35 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Corpus callosum decrements have frequently been reported in very preterm subjects without PVL at different ages (34 -37), including with the use of VBM methodology (11,38). In agreement with Davatzikos et al (39), we found decrements in the corpus callosum in the group of PVL children group.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…By using these procedures, we have previously found that premature adolescents without clinical WM lesions had WM reductions in several cortical and subcortical cerebral regions (11,12) and that prematures at low risk of neurodevelopmental disorders showed GM reductions, mainly involving the temporal lobe (13). However, this technique has yet to be used in the study of preterm children with PVL.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Gray Matter Volume Decrements in Preterm Children With Periventricular Leukomalacia

et al. 2011

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Periventricular leukomalacia (PVL) is the prototypic lesion in the encephalopathy of prematurity. Although PVL is identified by targeting cerebral white matter (WM), neuropathological and MRI studies document gray matter (GM) loss in cortical and subcortical structures. This study aimed to investigate the distribution of GM changes in children with a history of premature birth and PVL. Voxel-based morphometry was used to examine regional GM abnormalities in 22 children with a history of preterm birth and PVL. Preterms with PVL were compared with 22 terms and 14 preterms without PVL of similar GA and birth weight. GM and WM global volumetric volumes were found to decrease in comparison with both control groups. Regional GM volume abnormalities were also found: compared with their term peers, preterm children with PVL showed several regions of GM reduction. Moreover, PVL differed from preterms without PVL in the medial temporal lobe bilaterally, thalamus bilaterally, and caudate nuclei bilaterally. In addition, in our preterm sample with PVL, birth weight showed a statistical significant correlation with decreased GM regions. In conclusion, the voxel-based morphometry methodology revealed that PVL per se does involve GM reductions. (Pediatr Res 69: 554-560, 2011) P eriventricular leukomalacia (PVL) is the most prevalent type of brain injury in the preterm infant. As such, it is associated with long-lasting cognitive, behavioral, and sensorymotor impairments. PVL comprises two different patterns of white matter (WM) injury, focal, and diffuse, and the most frequently affected regions are those located contiguous to the external angles of the lateral ventricles (1). The focal component implies necrosis of WM tissue and, depending on its size, is termed cystic (macroscopic) PVL or noncystic (microscopic) PVL (2). Diffuse PVL, usually presenting as hypomyelination and ventriculomegaly, is due to premyelinating oligodendrocyte loss and subsequent microgliosis and astrogliosis (3).Although PVL characteristically affects cerebral WM (4), neuropathological studies in PVL samples have shown that gray matter (GM) lesions are frequently present in infants with PVL, indicating that WM injury is often accompanied by GM abnormalities in this preterm population (5,6). MRI studies have reported global cortical GM and thalamic volume reductions in preterm neonates with PVL (7-9).Voxel-based morphometry (VBM) is an automated procedure for quantifying GM and WM regional changes from a voxel-by-voxel analysis of MRI data (10). By using these procedures, we have previously found that premature adolescents without clinical WM lesions had WM reductions in several cortical and subcortical cerebral regions (11,12) and that prematures at low risk of neurodevelopmental disorders showed GM reductions, mainly involving the temporal lobe (13). However, this technique has yet to be used in the study of preterm children with PVL.The aims of this study were to investigate whether regional GM volume decreases were present in preterm chil...

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Gray Matter Volume Decrements in Preterm Children With Periventricular Leukomalacia

et al. 2011

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…WM deficits were seen symmetrically in the posterior part of the internal capsule and the superior, middle frontal, pre-and post-central gyri, and the optic radiation and unilaterally involving the left uncinate fasciculus. A recent preterm birth cohort of 50 adolescents showed diffuse regional WM volume decreases (18). Bilateral involvement of the superior and inferior longitudinal fasciculus was present.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…Furthermore, an association has been found between some of these abnormalities, such as delay in gyral development being highly related to the presence and severity of WM abnormalities (17). To date, WM volumetric studies in preterm infants and children have demonstrated total WM volume reduction to be significantly correlated with BW (11) and GA (12,18), and some studies further show the adverse effect of regional WM changes on neurocognitive function (19 -21).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

White Matter Volume and Anisotropy in Preterm Children: A Pilot Study of Neurocognitive Correlates

et al. 2007

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

ABSTRACT:The objectives of this study were to evaluate the differences in whole brain white matter (WM) volume and anisotropy between preterm and term children and to determine the relationships with cognitive outcome. Twenty-five low birth weight (BW), preterm, neurologically normal children between 8.8 and 11.5 y of age were recruited for volumetric and diffusion-tensor magnetic resonance imaging (DTI), together with 13 age-matched term control subjects. Subsequent intelligence quotient (IQ) testing was performed for 21 preterm children within 6 mo of imaging studies. We computed the mean volume and fractional anisotropy (FA) of the whole brain WM and compared the differences between the two groups. Mean WM volume and FA were significantly lower in the preterm group (p ϭ 0.014 and p Ͻ 0.001, respectively). Multiple regression analysis found both WM volume and FA to be independent variables significantly affecting full scale IQ (FSIQ) (r 2 ϭ 0.407, p ϭ 0.021 and r 2 ϭ 0.496, p ϭ 0.005, respectively) after adjusting for BW, gestational age (GA), and gender. In the evaluation of the whole brain WM of preterm children, we found that both volume and FA remain reduced at late childhood with both parameters significantly affecting long-term cognitive outcome. N early 90% of very low BW (VLBW) premature infants now survive the neonatal period due to major advances in neonatal intensive care (1). However, approximately 10% of VLBW preterm infants later exhibit cerebral palsy, 30%-50% later manifest neurodevelopmental handicap during their preschool years, and 50% require special help in grade school. Even in the absence of global intellectual deficits, premature infants are at increased risk of learning disabilities, academic difficulties (2,3), and behavioral problems (4,5). Nearly 20% repeat a grade in school by age 8 y (6).With recent advances in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), subtle brain anomalies are now described in preterm children using qualitative and quantitative MR methods, such as decrease in cortical complexity (7) and decreases in total cortical gray matter (GM) (8 -10) and WM volume (11-13), as well as regional reduced tissue volume (14 -16). Furthermore, an association has been found between some of these abnormalities, such as delay in gyral development being highly related to the presence and severity of WM abnormalities (17). To date, WM volumetric studies in preterm infants and children have demonstrated total WM volume reduction to be significantly correlated with BW (11) and GA (12,18), and some studies further show the adverse effect of regional WM changes on neurocognitive function (19 -21).DTI is a relatively new quantitative MRI technique advantageous for the evaluation of the WM fibers in the brain because it is able to evaluate the directional variability of water diffusion. In WM tracts, the movement of water molecules is relatively free in the direction parallel to its length but restricted in the perpendicular directions by barriers such as axonal membrane and myelin sheaths surroundi...

show abstract

“…[19][20][21][22] In addition, several authors have commented on the regional vulnerability of the preterm brain, and studies of preterm individuals ranging from school age to young adulthood have reported both gray and white matter changes in the frontotemporal and hippocampal regions bilaterally. [23][24][25][26] The left temporal region is more markedly affected than the right, and preterm males are more likely to experience both decreases in volume and abnormalities of gyrification in the temporal lobes when compared with preterm females. 20,22,27 By contrast, Kesler et al reported disproportionately enlarged frontal gray matter in preterm children compared with term controls at 8 years of age.…”

Section: Volumetric Imaging and Microstructural Analysesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Injury and recovery in the developing brain: evidence from functional MRI studies of prematurely born children

Ment

Constable

2007

Nat Rev Neurol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

SUMMARYFunctional MRI (fMRI) might provide important insights into emerging data that suggest that recovery from injury can occur in the brains of children born prematurely. Strategies employing auditory stimulation demonstrate blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) activation in preterm infants as young as 33 weeks' gestational age, and reliable BOLD signal in response to visual stimulation occurs at term-equivalent age. Strategies based on fMRI are particularly suited to the study of language and memory, and emerging data are likely to provide insights into perplexing reports that have demonstrated improving cognitive scores but persistent volumetric and microstructural changes in frontotemporal language systems in the prematurely born. Even when sex, gestational age and early medical and environmental interventions are taken into account, fMRI data from several investigators suggest the engagement of alternative neural networks for language and memory in the developing preterm brain.

show abstract

Abnormal orbitofrontal development due to prematurity

Abstract: Premature birth affects cerebral gyrification, and this impairment is not reversible during childhood. Identification of the specific factors involved in abnormal brain maturation may lead to effective interventions.

Cited by 64 publications

References 35 publications

Gray Matter Volume Decrements in Preterm Children With Periventricular Leukomalacia

Gray Matter Volume Decrements in Preterm Children With Periventricular Leukomalacia

White Matter Volume and Anisotropy in Preterm Children: A Pilot Study of Neurocognitive Correlates

Injury and recovery in the developing brain: evidence from functional MRI studies of prematurely born children

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About