engleski

Volumetric analysis of corticopontine system in the human preterm infants

Perinatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) is a major cause of white matter injury and long-term neurological deficits in children. Motor corticospinal as well as corticopontine pathways are frequent targets of injury since they pass through vulnerable periventricular space and crossroads. In this study we analyzed cerebral volumes as indicator of white matter injury and compared with recipient areas in pons and cerebellum in order to find possible selective vulnerability of corticopontine system. Study involved 10 normal term infants, 10 normotypic premature infants without lesions and 10 premature infants who have lesions associated with perinatal HIE. All groups were scanned by MRI device twice, first at the corrected term age and second at the age of two years. All volumes were measured on 3T MR images utilizing semi-automated (MNI toolbox) and manual segmentation methods (Analyze 8.1). Unlike linear growth observed in normal group, normotypic group showed decreased volume of pons and cerebellum at term age, which compensate till the age of 2 years. Group with HIE lesions shows volume reduction during both scanning. It seems that both origin and trajectory - termination areas of the motor pathways are reduced in HIE. We didn’t find evidence for selective vulnerability of corticopontine pathways, but we have found that they are regularly damaged in HIE brain as a part of general white matter pathology. Our finding is in the agreement with hypothesis that periventricular crossroads and periventricular fiber system are vulnerable in HIE.

brainstem, MRI, perinatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, premature infant

nije evidentirano