Aberrant brain functional connectivity in newborns with congenital heart disease before cardiac surgery

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Pediatric Cardiology
• Developmental Biology

Background:

• Newborns with congenital heart disease (CHD) requiring open heart surgery face elevated risks for neurodevelopmental disabilities.
• Previous research indicates altered brain growth, microstructure, and metabolism in fetuses and newborns with complex CHD.
• Limited research exists on functional brain connectivity alterations in this population prior to surgical intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate and compare whole-brain functional connectivity of resting-state networks in healthy newborns and those with CHD before surgery.
• To identify potential early-life brain network alterations associated with CHD.

Main Methods:

• Utilized quantitative MRI to assess functional brain connectivity.
• Employed graph theory and network-based statistics for analysis.
• Compared data from healthy term newborns (n=82) with term neonates diagnosed with CHD before surgery (n=30).

Main Results:

• Demonstrated intact global network topology, characterized by efficient and economic small-world networks in both groups.
• Observed significantly reduced regional functional connectivity in newborns with CHD.
• Identified that reduced connectivity involved critical brain regions, including network hubs and rich club nodes.

Conclusions:

• Findings reveal early-life brain dysfunction in newborns with CHD, even with intact global network topology.
• These alterations in regional functional connectivity may be linked to subsequent neurodevelopmental impairments post-cardiac surgery.
• Further research is warranted to explore the prognostic, diagnostic, and surveillance utility of these neuroimaging findings.