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Brain functional network topology and connectivity in primary blepharospasm.
Xin-Xin Yao1, Hua-Liang Li2, Shu Wang1
1Department of Radiology, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, China.
Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience
|October 24, 2025
Summary
Primary blepharospasm (BSP) involves disrupted brain networks, affecting local processing and key brain regions. These network changes may indicate disease progression and inform new therapies.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Systems Neuroscience
- Clinical Neurology
Background:
- Primary blepharospasm (BSP) pathophysiology is not fully understood.
- Characterizing whole-brain functional network topology in treatment-naive BSP patients is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whole-brain functional network topology in treatment-naive primary blepharospasm (BSP) patients.
- To identify alterations in functional connectivity (FC) and network metrics associated with BSP.
Main Methods:
- Resting-state fMRI was used in 39 BSP patients and 39 healthy controls (HCs).
- Graph theoretical analysis assessed global and nodal network metrics.
- Network-Based Statistics (NBS) identified subnetworks with altered FC and correlations with clinical variables (JRS, illness duration).
Main Results:
- BSP patients showed significantly lower local efficiency compared to HCs.
- Nodal analysis revealed altered efficiency/degree in the thalamus, supplementary motor area, precentral gyri, postcentral gyrus, and insula.
- Altered FC subnetworks were identified across sensorimotor, limbic-subcortical, frontoparietal, and default mode networks; left thalamic efficiency correlated with illness duration, and right precentral gyrus efficiency correlated with JRS score.
Conclusions:
- Primary blepharospasm (BSP) is characterized by complex functional network disruptions, including impaired local processing and altered nodal function.
- These network alterations support BSP as a network disorder and may serve as objective markers for disease progression.
- Identified network changes could guide the development of targeted neuromodulation therapies for BSP.
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