Craniomaxillofacial Complex Injuries Sustained During Training in Alpine Environments: Multimodal MRI-Based Analysis...

Area of Science:

• Neuroimaging
• Trauma research
• Environmental medicine

Background:

• Alpine training poses risks for craniomaxillofacial (CMF) injuries and potential central nervous system (CNS) involvement.
• Brain injury patterns in this specific context are not well-characterized.
• Multimodal MRI can elucidate acute brain injury features and their relationships.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze acute brain injury patterns in patients with CMF injuries from alpine training using multimodal MRI.
• To investigate interrelationships between structural damage, white matter alterations, and functional brain networks.
• To provide an imaging basis for clinical assessment and risk stratification.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective observational study of patients with CMF injuries from alpine training undergoing multimodal MRI.
• MRI included conventional sequences, DWI, SWI, DTI, and rs-fMRI.
• Analysis focused on structural lesions, microbleeds, white matter integrity (FA), and brain network topology.

Main Results:

• Alpine training CMF injuries showed multilevel brain damage: contusions, microbleeds (corpus callosum, deep white matter), and reduced white matter integrity.
• Microbleed burden correlated with decreased FA and weakened functional connectivity.
• Network analysis revealed reduced global efficiency and clustering, with some frontal lobe network enhancement, indicating acute reorganization.

Conclusions:

• CMF injuries from alpine training induce environmentally sensitive, multiscale brain damage.
• Coordinated alterations in structural injury, white matter integrity, and network function are observed.
• Multimodal MRI aids comprehensive phenotyping, detects occult damage, and informs clinical management of alpine-associated brain injury.