Department of Medical Science, Kyungpook National University College of Medicine, Daegu, Korea.
Int J Audiol. 2012 May;51(5):413-7. doi: 10.3109/14992027.2011.652677. Epub 2012 Jan 30.
We report a case study on possible alterations in resting-state functional connectivity between the auditory network and non-auditory brain regions in tinnitus patients.
Independent component analyses were performed to evaluate coherent spontaneous activity in distributed brain networks. The resting-state functional connectivity scores between the right and left auditory networks were measured. Direct comparison of resting-state connectivity between tinnitus patients and controls was made using a two-sample t-test.
Four patients (three male, one female; mean age 45 ± 3.92 years) with chronic tinnitus lateralized to the left ear, and six age-matched controls (four male, two female; mean age 45 ± 2.76 years) participated in this case study.
The average resting-state functional connectivity (FC) score between the left and right auditory cortical regions was significantly lower in tinnitus patients than in controls (P < 0.05). Direct comparison between patients and controls showed that increased functional connectivity caused by tinnitus occurred predominantly in the left amygdala and in the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex.
Our pilot study suggested that resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) could be useful to investigate possible alterations in resting-state neuronal activity between the auditory and non-auditory networks in tinnitus patients.
我们报告了一项关于耳鸣患者听觉网络与非听觉脑区静息态功能连接可能改变的病例研究。
采用独立成分分析评估分布式脑网络中相干自发活动。测量右左听觉网络之间的静息态功能连接得分。使用两样本 t 检验对耳鸣患者和对照组之间的静息态连接进行直接比较。
四名患者（三男一女；平均年龄 45±3.92 岁），耳鸣偏向左侧耳，六名年龄匹配的对照组（四男两女；平均年龄 45±2.76 岁）参与了这项病例研究。
耳鸣患者左右听觉皮质区域的平均静息态功能连接（FC）得分明显低于对照组（P<0.05）。患者与对照组之间的直接比较显示，耳鸣引起的功能连接增加主要发生在左侧杏仁核和背内侧前额叶皮质。
我们的初步研究表明，静息态功能磁共振成像（fMRI）可用于研究耳鸣患者听觉和非听觉网络之间静息态神经元活动的可能改变。
