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Phenotyping the Preterm Brain: Characterizing Individual Deviations From Normative Volumetric Development in Two
Ralica Dimitrova1,2, Sophie Arulkumaran1, Olivia Carney1
1Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London SE1 7EH, UK.
Cerebral Cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991)
|April 6, 2021
Summary
Individual brain development in preterm infants varies greatly. This study uses normative brain growth charts to identify deviations linked to risk factors and neurocognition, offering a personalized approach to understanding preterm birth
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Biology
- Medical Imaging
Background:
- Preterm birth leads to diverse brain changes, complicating pathogenesis and outcome prediction.
- Group-level analysis of preterm infant brains masks significant individual variability.
- Individualized assessment is crucial for understanding brain maturation in preterm infants.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop normative brain volumetric development curves for term-born infants.
- To compare preterm infants' brain development against these normative curves.
- To investigate the relationship between deviations from normative development and clinical factors.
Main Methods:
- Gaussian process regression used to model brain volumetric development in 274 term-born infants.
- Comparison of 89 preterm infants (scanned at term-equivalent age) against normative charts.
- Validation using an independent dataset of 253 preterm infants with varying scan parameters.
Main Results:
- Rapid, nonuniform brain growth observed during the neonatal period.
- Widespread, multiple, and highly individualized cerebral atypicalities found in preterm infants.
- Deviations from normative development correlated with respiratory support, nutrition, birth weight, and neurocognition.
Conclusions:
- Individual brain development in preterm infants shows significant variation, often masked by group analyses.
- Deviations from normative brain development are clinically relevant and associated with perinatal factors.
- The developed method and dataset enable precise, individualized characterization of the preterm brain.
