Patterns of Change in Functional Connectivity and Motor Performance Are Different in Youth Recently Recovered from...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Developmental Psychology
• Sports Medicine

Background:

• Adolescents with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) are at risk for recurrent injuries.
• Subtle motor deficits may persist after clinical recovery from mTBI.
• Altered functional connectivity in brain networks is linked to these deficits.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate longitudinal changes in functional brain connectivity and motor performance in adolescents after mTBI.
• To examine the relationship between brain network connectivity trajectories and motor skill recovery.
• To compare these changes in mTBI survivors with never-injured controls.

Main Methods:

• Longitudinal study design with initial and 3-month follow-up assessments.
• Used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) for task-based and resting-state scans.
• Assessed subtle motor signs using the Physical and Neurological Examination of Subtle Signs (PANESS).

Main Results:

• Youth recovered from mTBI showed increased somatomotor-dorsal attention network connectivity over time compared to controls.
• No significant differences in somatomotor-default mode network connectivity trajectories were observed.
• Greater increases in somatomotor-dorsal attention connectivity correlated with slower motor task performance at 3 months post-injury.

Conclusions:

• Longitudinal changes in somatomotor-dorsal attention network connectivity may underlie persistent motor learning deficits after pediatric mTBI.
• These findings highlight potential biomarkers for assessing recovery and injury risk.
• Further research is needed to understand how these trajectories predict long-term outcomes and re-injury risk.