Tuberous sclerosis complex: correlation of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings with comorbidities

We studied the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings in a cohort of Chinese children with tuberous sclerosis complex to determine the relationship between age, sex, mental retardation, autism, epilepsy, infantile spasm, and early age at onset of seizures and the numbers and locations of tubers detected. We searched our tuberous sclerosis registry, established in 1985 (N = 44), and performed an analysis of children who had MRIs of the brain performed (n = 22). A neuroradiologist blinded to the clinical findings scored the MRIs according to the total number and site of the tubers. The following factors were analyzed: age, sex, presence of autism (n = 7), presence (n = 19) and severity of mental retardation (mild [n = 12], moderate to severe [n = 7]), presence of epilepsy (n = 21) or infantile spasm (n = 8), and age at onset of seizures less than 1 year (n = 10). There was no significant relationship between the number and site of tubers and the following factors: sex, autism, mental retardation, degree of mental retardation, epilepsy, history of infantile spasm, or age at onset of seizures less than 1 year. Only the presence of cortical tubers in the parietal regions had a significant relationship with the history of infantile spasm (P = .012). Using multiple regression analysis of all of the risk factors, only age is related to the number of tubers in the MRI (P = .047), and a history of infantile spasm is related to the presence of tubers in the parietal (P = .009) and occipital (P = .031) lobes. The associated comorbidities in tuberous sclerosis complex might be explained by more complex underlying genetic or pathologic issues rather than purely by the site of the cortical tubers. We suggest that a developmental approach, by analyzing the age at the appearance of tubers in both symptomatic and asymptomatic cases with the development of other neuropsychiatric comorbidities, should be undertaken to assess the causal relationship.