Altered functional connectivity in children born very preterm at school age
Hye Jung Cho1, Hyejin Jeong2, Chan-A Park3
1Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, Gil Medical Center, Gachon University College of Medicine, Incheon, Korea.
Scientific Reports
|May 4, 2022
Summary
Children born very preterm show lower intelligence scores and altered brain functional connectivity (FC) compared to term-born peers. These neurodevelopmental differences highlight risks associated with preterm birth.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Pediatrics
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Children born very preterm (gestation < 32 weeks) face heightened risks of neurodevelopmental impairment.
- Understanding cognitive and neural differences is crucial for early intervention strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare cognitive function between very preterm and term-born children at 6 years of age.
- To investigate differences in white matter microstructure and functional connectivity (FC) using advanced neuroimaging techniques.
Main Methods:
- Cognitive assessments (Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, 4th ed.) and behavioral checklists were administered to 36 very preterm children and 26 term-born controls.
- Tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS) analyzed white matter microstructure.
- Resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) assessed functional connectivity (FC) between brain networks.
Main Results:
- Very preterm children exhibited significantly lower intelligence scores than term-born controls.
- No significant differences in white matter microstructure were detected via TBSS.
- Altered FC was observed: increased connectivity between frontoparietal and language networks, and decreased connectivity within the right salience network in the very preterm group.
Conclusions:
- Altered functional connectivity patterns in higher-order brain networks are associated with cognitive deficits in very preterm children.
- These findings suggest potential disruptions in functional network architecture impacting cognitive development.
- Further research is warranted to establish a direct link between specific FC alterations and cognitive outcomes.
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