Abnormal Interhemispheric Functional Connectivity in Acute Pericoronitis: A Resting-State MRI Study

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Medical Imaging
• Dental Research

Background:

• Acute pericoronitis (AP) is a common cause of toothache.
• Toothache can affect brain function, but brain hemisphere interactions are understudied.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate brain functional connectivity changes in patients with AP.
• To explore the impact of toothache on interhemispheric brain communication.

Main Methods:

• Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-MRI) was used.
• Voxel mirror homotopic connectivity (VMHC) analyzed differences between 34 AP patients and 34 controls.
• Functional connectivity analysis explored network changes.

Main Results:

• AP patients showed reduced VMHC in the thalamus and increased VMHC in the inferior frontal gyrus.
• Significant alterations were observed in default, frontoparietal, cerebellar, and pain networks.
• Connectivity changes correlated with clinical pain parameters.

Conclusions:

• Toothache associated with AP induces widespread changes in brain functional connectivity.
• These findings provide new insights into the neurophysiology of pain processing.