Grey and White Matter Volume Changes after Preterm Birth: A Meta-Analytic Approach

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Developmental Biology
• Radiology

Background:

• Preterm (PT) born individuals often exhibit reduced brain grey matter volumes (GMV) and white matter volumes (WMV).
• Understanding brain growth trajectories in PT individuals is limited by the lack of large, aggregated datasets.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate GMV and WMV in PT born individuals by synthesizing existing literature.
• To contrast brain volumes in PT individuals with normative data from full-term (FT) controls across the lifespan.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature search of PubMed and Web of Science (March 2021).
• Extraction of GMV, WMV, total intracranial volume (TIV), and age at scan from 9 studies (538 PT subjects).
• Comparison with individual volumetric data from 880 FT controls (ages 1-30 years).

Main Results:

• PT born individuals consistently showed lower GMV from infancy to early adulthood, with no catch-up growth observed.
• While GMV trajectories were similar to FT controls, WMV was notably reduced in PT adolescents.
• Altered brain volumes in PT individuals were evident across the first half of the lifespan.

Conclusions:

• Brain volume alterations, particularly in white matter during adolescence, are a consequence of preterm birth.
• Longitudinal studies with large, aggregated datasets of PT individuals are needed to further elucidate brain development.