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Abnormal brain structure in children with isolated clefts of the lip or palate

Peg Nopoulos1, Douglas R Langbehn, John Canady

  • 1Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA. peggy-nopoulos@uiowa.edu

Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine
|August 8, 2007
PubMed

Insights

Children with isolated cleft lip and/or palate (ICLP) exhibit abnormal brain structure, including smaller cerebrum and cerebellum volumes. This suggests altered brain development trajectories from childhood.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Developmental Biology
  • Pediatric Medicine

Background:

  • Isolated cleft lip and/or palate (ICLP) is a common congenital condition.
  • Previous research has primarily focused on the craniofacial aspects of ICLP.
  • The impact of ICLP on brain structure and development remains less understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate and characterize brain structure abnormalities in children with ICLP.
  • To compare brain volumes and tissue distribution between children with ICLP and healthy controls.
  • To explore potential differences in brain development trajectories.

Main Methods:

  • A case-control study involving 74 children (aged 7-17) with ICLP and matched healthy controls.
  • Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to assess brain structure, including regional brain volumes.
  • Height and head circumference were measured to control for body size variations.

Main Results:

  • Children with ICLP had significantly lower height compared to controls.
  • After adjusting for body size, ICLP was associated with reduced cerebrum and cerebellum volumes.
  • Abnormalities included decreased frontal lobe volume and smaller subcortical nuclei.
  • Boys with ICLP showed altered gray and white matter distribution, unlike girls with ICLP.

Conclusions:

  • Children with ICLP present with distinct brain structural abnormalities.
  • These findings suggest a potential disruption in brain development pathways in individuals with ICLP.
  • The observed brain structure differences in children differ from those in adults with ICLP, indicating an abnormal developmental trajectory.
Abstract

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