TY - JOUR
T1 - Diffusion tensor imaging of deep gray matter in children treated for brain malignancies
AU - Horská, Alena
AU - Nidecker, Anna
AU - Intrapiromkul, Jarunee
AU - Tannazi, Firouzeh
AU - Ardekani, Siamak
AU - Brant, Larry J.
AU - Wharam, Moody
AU - Mahone, E. Mark
N1 - Funding Information:
Acknowledgments The study was supported by the National Institutes of Health R01 NS042851; P30HD024061-16; Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, National Institutes of Health/National Center for Research Resources Clinical and Translational Sciences Awards Program, UL1-RR025005; Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Imaging Core, P30HD024061, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
PY - 2014/4
Y1 - 2014/4
N2 - Purpose: Previous DTI studies reported microstructural changes in white matter of patients receiving treatment for brain malignancies. The primary aim of this prospective pilot longitudinal study was to examine if DTI can detect microstructural changes in deep gray matter (as evaluated by the apparent diffusion coefficient, ADC) between pediatric patients treated with cranial radiation therapy and typically developing healthy children. The relationship between ADC and neurobehavioral performance was also examined. Methods: ADC was measured at 1.5 T in the caudate, putamen, globus pallidus, thalamus, and hippocampus in nine patients (mean age 11.8 years) and nine age-matched healthy controls. The study was designed with four visits: baseline, 6-month, 15-month, and 27-month follow-ups. Results: Patients had 24 % higher overall mean ADC in the hippocampus compared with controls (p∈=∈0.003). Post hoc analyses revealed significantly elevated ADC at baseline (p∈=∈0.003) and at the 27-month follow-up (p∈=∈0.006). Nevertheless, patients performed normally on a verbal memory test considered to be a hippocampus-related function. Relative to controls, patients' performance on the tests of the visual-spatial working memory decreased over time (group by visit, p∈=∈0.036). Both patients and controls showed a decline in motor speed with increasing ADC in the globus pallidus and putamen. Conclusions: Childhood brain malignancies and their treatment may affect gray matter microstructure as measured by water diffusion. Significant findings in the hippocampus but not other regions suggest that differences in tissue sensitivity to disease- and treatment-related injury among gray matter regions may exist. ADC in basal ganglia may be associated with motor performance.
AB - Purpose: Previous DTI studies reported microstructural changes in white matter of patients receiving treatment for brain malignancies. The primary aim of this prospective pilot longitudinal study was to examine if DTI can detect microstructural changes in deep gray matter (as evaluated by the apparent diffusion coefficient, ADC) between pediatric patients treated with cranial radiation therapy and typically developing healthy children. The relationship between ADC and neurobehavioral performance was also examined. Methods: ADC was measured at 1.5 T in the caudate, putamen, globus pallidus, thalamus, and hippocampus in nine patients (mean age 11.8 years) and nine age-matched healthy controls. The study was designed with four visits: baseline, 6-month, 15-month, and 27-month follow-ups. Results: Patients had 24 % higher overall mean ADC in the hippocampus compared with controls (p∈=∈0.003). Post hoc analyses revealed significantly elevated ADC at baseline (p∈=∈0.003) and at the 27-month follow-up (p∈=∈0.006). Nevertheless, patients performed normally on a verbal memory test considered to be a hippocampus-related function. Relative to controls, patients' performance on the tests of the visual-spatial working memory decreased over time (group by visit, p∈=∈0.036). Both patients and controls showed a decline in motor speed with increasing ADC in the globus pallidus and putamen. Conclusions: Childhood brain malignancies and their treatment may affect gray matter microstructure as measured by water diffusion. Significant findings in the hippocampus but not other regions suggest that differences in tissue sensitivity to disease- and treatment-related injury among gray matter regions may exist. ADC in basal ganglia may be associated with motor performance.
KW - Basal ganglia
KW - Brain
KW - Children
KW - Diffusion tensor imaging
KW - Hippocampus
KW - Radiation therapy
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U2 - 10.1007/s00381-013-2315-1
DO - 10.1007/s00381-013-2315-1
M3 - Article
C2 - 24264381
AN - SCOPUS:84897520656
VL - 30
SP - 631
EP - 638
JO - Child's Nervous System
JF - Child's Nervous System
SN - 0256-7040
IS - 4
ER -