Aberrant somatosensory phase synchronization in children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Developmental Neuroscience
• Rehabilitation Medicine

Background:

• Children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy (HCP) frequently experience somatosensory disturbances.
• Neurophysiological underpinnings of these somatosensory deficits in HCP remain unclear.
• Understanding somatosensory processing is crucial for targeted interventions in HCP.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate phase synchrony within and between primary (S1) and secondary (S2) somatosensory areas in children with HCP.
• To elucidate neurophysiological alterations in somatosensory functional connectivity in HCP.
• To compare brain activity between affected and less-affected hemispheres in HCP and typically developing (TD) children.

Main Methods:

• Somatosensory evoked fields (SEFs) were recorded using pediatric magnetoencephalography (MEG).
• Passive pneumatic stimulation of the upper extremities was employed.
• Phase synchrony analysis was performed within S1, within S2, and between S1 and S2 in both hemispheres.

Main Results:

• Aberrant phase synchronizations were observed in both S1 and S2, and between these areas, in children with HCP.
• The less-affected (LA) hemisphere showed reduced phase synchrony up to ~120 ms post-stimulus compared to the more-affected (MA) hemisphere and TD controls.
• The MA hemisphere exhibited enhanced phase synchrony after ~100 ms compared to the LA hemisphere and TD controls.

Conclusions:

• Children with HCP exhibit abnormal somatosensory functional connectivity in both hemispheres.
• Altered phase synchrony patterns suggest widespread neurophysiological changes in the somatosensory network.
• These findings highlight the potential for neurophysiological markers to inform understanding and treatment of somatosensory deficits in HCP.