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Advanced Diffusion Imaging in The Hippocampus of Rats with Mild Traumatic Brain Injury
Published on: August 14, 2019
Small world properties changes in mild traumatic brain injury
1Department of Radiology / Center for Biomedical Imaging, NYU Langone Medical Center, New York, New York.
Purpose:
To investigate local and global efficiency changes characterized by small-world properties based on resting-state functional MRI, such as centrality and clustering coefficient, in mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) patients; and to associate these findings with axonal injury as measured by diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) as well as with post-concussive symptom (PCS).
Materials And Methods:
Thirty patients (mean age 35 ± 13 years) with clinically defined MTBI and 45 age-matched healthy controls (mean age 37 ± 10 years) participated in the experiments. Resting-state functional MRI was performed using gradient echo planar imaging sequence with 3 Tesla MRI scanner to obtain functional small-world networks. Out of all participants, 20 MTBI patients and 20 controls had available DTI data with three b-values (0, 500, 1000) s/mm2 and 30 directions for diffuse axonal injury analyses.
Results:
Compared with controls, MTBI patients showed lower relative betweenness centrality (P = 0.01), but significantly higher clustering coefficient (P = 0.04), and these two metrics correlated negatively in patients (r = -0.77; P < 0.001). Regions with lower betweenness centrality (e.g., frontal and occipital) corresponded with the regions of reduced FA in patients, while global FA reduction correlated with betweenness centrality (r = 0.48; P = 0.03) and clustering coefficient (r = -0.46; P = 0.04) in MTBI patients. In addition, there was significantly higher thalamocortical connectivity that correlated with clustering coefficient (r = 0.39; P = 0.03) in patients. Also, patients with higher clustering coefficient tended to have less PCS score with negative correlation (r = -0.4; P = 0.04).
Conclusion:
Our results demonstrated significant functional small-world properties changes in patients with MTBI, and suggest decreased global efficiency, possibly due to diffuse axonal injury and local network upregulation including increased thalamo-cortical connectivity.
Level Of Evidence:
2 Technical Efficacy: Stage 2 J. MAGN. RESON. IMAGING 2017;46:518-527.
Insights
Mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) alters brain network efficiency, showing reduced centrality and increased clustering. These changes correlate with diffuse axonal injury and may indicate altered thalamocortical connectivity.
Area of Science:
- Neuroimaging
- Brain Network Analysis
- Traumatic Brain Injury
Background:
- Mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) can lead to persistent post-concussive symptoms (PCS).
- Understanding the neural underpinnings of MTBI is crucial for effective diagnosis and treatment.
- Resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) offer insights into brain function and structural integrity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate changes in small-world network properties (centrality, clustering coefficient) in MTBI patients using rs-fMRI.
- To correlate these network changes with diffuse axonal injury (DAI) measured by DTI.
- To associate network alterations with post-concussive symptoms (PCS).
Main Methods:
- rs-fMRI data were acquired from 30 MTBI patients and 45 healthy controls.
- DTI data were collected from a subset of participants (20 MTBI, 20 controls) to assess DAI.
- Analysis focused on functional small-world network metrics, fractional anisotropy (FA), and PCS scores.
Main Results:
- MTBI patients exhibited lower betweenness centrality and higher clustering coefficients compared to controls.
- Reduced centrality in specific regions correlated with localized FA reduction, while global FA reduction correlated with centrality and clustering.
- Increased thalamocortical connectivity in MTBI patients correlated with higher clustering coefficients and lower PCS scores.
Conclusions:
- MTBI is associated with significant alterations in functional brain network properties, specifically decreased global efficiency.
- These network changes may be linked to diffuse axonal injury and compensatory local network upregulation, including thalamocortical pathways.
- Brain network analysis provides valuable insights into the pathophysiology of MTBI and its relationship with clinical outcomes.
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