Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 13, 2025
10:59
Investigations on Alterations of Hippocampal Circuit Function Following Mild Traumatic Brain Injury
Published on: November 19, 2012
15.7K
Altered hypothalamic functional connectivity in post-traumatic headache after mild traumatic brain injury
Liyan Lu1, Fengfang Li1, Peng Wang1
1Department of Radiology, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, No.68, Changle Road, Nanjing, 210006, China.
The Journal of Headache and Pain
|July 30, 2020
Summary
Post-traumatic headache (PTH) following mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) is linked to disrupted hypothalamic functional connectivity (FC). This abnormal FC correlates with headache severity, suggesting a role in mTBI neuropathology.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Radiology
- Pain Medicine
Background:
- Post-traumatic headache (PTH) is a common sequela of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI).
- Disrupted hypothalamic functional connectivity (FC) is implicated in pain disorders.
- The acute-stage alterations in hypothalamus-based FC in mTBI with PTH and their correlation with headache symptoms remain unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate alterations in resting-state functional connectivity (FC) originating from the hypothalamus in patients with acute mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) and post-traumatic headache (PTH).
- To explore the relationship between disrupted hypothalamic FC and headache symptom severity in mTBI patients with PTH.
Main Methods:
- Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was performed on 44 mTBI patients with PTH, 27 mTBI patients without PTH, and 43 healthy controls.
- Seed-based whole-brain correlation analysis was used to characterize hypothalamic resting-state networks.
- Pearson correlation was employed to assess associations between hypothalamic FC and headache frequency, intensity, and cognitive scores (MoCA).
Main Results:
- mTBI patients with PTH exhibited significantly decreased left and right hypothalamus-based FC with frontal regions (middle frontal gyrus and medial superior frontal gyrus) compared to mTBI patients without PTH.
- Decreased FC in the right middle frontal gyrus was positively associated with headache frequency and intensity.
- Decreased FC in the right medial superior frontal gyrus showed a strong positive correlation with headache frequency and intensity.
Conclusions:
- This study provides evidence for disrupted hypothalamic functional connectivity (FC) in patients experiencing acute mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) with post-traumatic headache (PTH).
- The observed abnormal FC significantly correlates with headache symptom measurements, indicating its potential role in the neuropathological mechanisms underlying mTBI-associated PTH.
