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Preterm Neonates Exhibit a "Catch-Up" Pattern in Motor Development During the Neonatal Period: A Diffusion Tensor
Yuying Feng1, Yannan Cheng1, Xianjun Li1
1Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China; Shaanxi Engineering Research Center of Computational Imaging and Medical Intelligence, Xi'an, China.
Insights
Preterm infants show delayed but improving sensorimotor function, with brain white matter development catching up postnatally. This early characterization aids in identifying high-risk infants for neurodevelopmental disability.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Biology
- Medical Imaging
Background:
- Preterm infants face significant risks for neurodevelopmental disabilities.
- Early assessment of brain and neurobehavioral function is crucial for identifying at-risk infants.
- Understanding postnatal age-related changes in white matter and neurobehavior is key.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the early developmental trajectory of sensorimotor function in preterm neonates.
- To explore age-related changes in brain white matter microstructure and neurobehavioral abilities.
- To compare these changes between preterm and term neonates.
Main Methods:
- Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) was used to assess white matter fractional anisotropy (FA).
- Neonatal neurobehavioral assessments measured active tone and behavior scores.
- Correlations between FA, neurobehavioral scores, and postnatal age were analyzed in specific brain regions.
Main Results:
- Preterm infants had lower FA in selected white matter regions compared to term infants.
- Corticospinal tract (CST) FA correlated more strongly with age in preterm infants.
- Preterm infants showed significant correlations between motor development scores and postnatal age.
Conclusions:
- Preterm neonates demonstrate a pattern of "catch-up" in motor development during the newborn period, despite initial delays.
- These findings highlight the dynamic nature of neurodevelopmental recovery in early life.
- Early DTI and neurobehavioral assessments can track developmental progress in preterm infants.
Background:
Preterm infants are at high risk for subsequent neurodevelopmental disability. Early developmental characterization of brain and neurobehavioral function is critical for identifying high-risk infants. This study aimed to elucidate the early evolution of sensorimotor function in preterm neonates by exploring postnatal age-related changes in the brain white matter (WM) and neurobehavioral abilities.
Methods:
One hundred eighteen neonates without abnormalities on magnetic resonance imaging were included. Diffusion tensor imaging-derived fractional anisotropy (FA) and neonatal neurobehavioral assessment were separately used to characterize the brain WM microstructure and neurobehavioral development levels. Scatterplots with linear fitting and Pearson correlation were used to investigate the relationships of FA and neurobehavioral scores (active tone and behavior scores) with postnatal age separately for preterm and term neonates. Here, the optical radiation (OR), auditory radiation, corticospinal tract (CST), posterior thalamic radiation (PTR), and thalamus-primary somatosensory cortex were selected as the regions of interest (ROIs).
Results:
The preterm FAs in the ROIs were lower than term neonates (all Bonferroni-corrected P < 0.001). Preterm CST FA showed a significantly higher correlation with postnatal age (P = 0.042) than term (r = 0.29 vs 0.08), whereas significantly higher correlations were found in term OR (P = 0.018) and PTR (P = 0.002). Similarly, relatively high and low correlations between active tone (r = 0.48 vs 0.35; P = 0.049 for interactions with a postnatal age ≥14 days and preterm/term group status) and behavioral scores (r = 0.36 vs 0.52; P = 0.030 for interactions of postnatal age and preterm/term group status) were observed in preterm infants.
Conclusions:
Although delayed, preterm neonates exhibit a "catch-up" pattern in motor development in the newborn stage.
