Alteration of spatial patterns at the network-level in facial synkinesis: an independent component and connectome analysis

Abstract

Background: The treatment of post-facial palsy synkinesis (PFPS) remains inadequate. Previous studies have confirmed that brain plasticity is involved in the process of functional restoration. Isolated activation has been well studied, however, the brain works as an integrity of several isolated regions. This study aimed to assess the alteration of the brain network topology with overall and local characteristics of information dissemination. Understanding the neural mechanisms of PFPS could help to improve therapy options and prognosis.Methods: Patients with facial synkinesis and healthy controls (HCs) were estimated using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) of resting-state. Subsequently, an independent component analysis (ICA) was used to extract four subnets from the whole brain. Then we used the measurements of graph theory and calculated in the whole-brain network and each sub-network.Results: We found no significant difference between the patient group and the HCs on the wholebrain scale. Then we identified four subnetworks from the resting-state data. In the sub-network property analysis, patients' locally distributed properties in the sensorimotor network (SMN) and ventral default mode network (vDMN) were reduced. It revealed that γ (10,000 permutations, P=0.048) and S (10,000 permutations, P=0.022) within the SMN progressively decreased in patients with PFPS. For the analysis of vDMN, significant differences were found in γ (10,000 permutations, P=0.019), Elocal (10,000 permutations, P=0.008), and β (10,000 permutations, P=0.011) between the groups.Conclusions: Our results demonstrated a reduction in local network processing efficiency in patients with PFPS. Therefore, we speculate that decreased characteristics in the intra-vDMN and intra-SMN, rather than the whole-brain network, may serve distinct symptoms such as facial nerve damage or more synkinetic movements. This finding of the alteration of network properties is a small step forward to help uncover the underlying mechanism.

Evidence of neuroplasticity with brain–computer interface in a randomized trial for post-stroke rehabilitation: a graph-theoretic study of subnetwork analysis

“…The images were first dimensionally reduced using principal component analysis (PCA) and then temporally concatenated and reduced using an expectation–maximization algorithm at the group level to extract 40 spatial components. Furthermore, the infomax ICA algorithm was performed in ICASSO for 100 repetitions to verify its robustness ( 38 ).…”

Identifying Modulated Functional Connectivity in Corresponding Cerebral Networks in Facial Nerve Lesions Patients With Facial Asymmetry

“…In our clinical observations, patients with homogeneous etiologies show high heterogeneity in asymmetry outcomes ( Chen et al, 2017 ; Ma et al, 2022 ). A recent study has demonstrated that facial nerve lesions induce widespread cerebral plasticity, including changes in cortical reorganization and functional connectivity, which correlate with clinical severity ( Klingner et al, 2012 ; Song et al, 2017 ; Ma et al, 2021a , b ). There is also evidence to suggest that cerebral plasticity contributes to facial muscle dysfunction ( He et al, 2014 ; Xiao et al, 2015 ; Ma et al, 2021b ).…”

Approaches to the Management of Synkinesis: A Scoping Review

“…3 However, newer findings such as reduced intrinsic connectivity in subnetworks of the central nervous system highlight that the full extent of the pathophysiology may not yet be completely understood. 4 Synkinetic movements have an undeniable aesthetic impact and can, in severe cases, be quite painful. Overall, PPFS can be socially debilitating, limit interpersonal interactions, and has a significant impact on the quality of life of affected patients.…”