King Jace B, Lopez-Larson Melissa P, Yurgelun-Todd Deborah A
Department of Radiology, University of Utah, 30 North 1900 East #1A071, Salt Lake City, UT 84132-2140, USA; Interdepartmental Program in Neuroscience, University of Utah, 20 South 2030 East, 390A BPRB, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA; Diagnostic Neuroimaging, University of Utah, 383 Colorow Drive, Salt Lake City, UT 84108, USA.
Diagnostic Neuroimaging, University of Utah, 383 Colorow Drive, Salt Lake City, UT 84108, USA; Department of Psychiatry, University of Utah, 501 Chipeta Way, Salt Lake City, UT 84108, USA.
Neuroimage Clin. 2016 Jan 6;11:81-89. doi: 10.1016/j.nicl.2016.01.003. eCollection 2016.
In the United States alone, the number of persons living with the enduring consequences of traumatic brain injuries is estimated to be between 3.2 and 5 million. This number does not include individuals serving in the United States military or seeking care at Veterans Affairs hospitals. The importance of understanding the neurobiological consequences of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) has increased with the return of veterans from conflicts overseas, many of who have suffered this type of brain injury. However, identifying the neuroanatomical regions most affected by mTBI continues to prove challenging. The aim of this study was to assess the use of mean cortical curvature as a potential indicator of progressive tissue loss in a cross-sectional sample of 54 veterans with mTBI compared to 31 controls evaluated with MRI. It was hypothesized that mean cortical curvature would be increased in veterans with mTBI, relative to controls, due in part to cortical restructuring related to tissue volume loss. Mean cortical curvature was assessed in 60 bilateral regions (31 sulcal, 29 gyral). Of the 120 regions investigated, nearly 50% demonstrated significantly increased mean cortical curvature in mTBI relative to controls with 25% remaining significant following multiple comparison correction (all, pFDR < .05). These differences were most prominent in deep gray matter regions of the cortex. Additionally, significant relationships were found between mean cortical curvature and gray and white matter volumes (all, p < .05). These findings suggest potentially unique patterns of atrophy by region and indicate that changes in brain microstructure due to mTBI are sensitive to measures of mean curvature.
仅在美国，据估计，遭受创伤性脑损伤并承受持久后果的人数就在320万至500万之间。这个数字不包括在美国军队服役或在退伍军人事务医院接受治疗的人员。随着海外冲突中退伍军人的归来，了解轻度创伤性脑损伤（mTBI）的神经生物学后果变得愈发重要，其中许多人都遭受了这种类型的脑损伤。然而，确定受mTBI影响最严重的神经解剖区域仍然具有挑战性。本研究的目的是评估平均皮质曲率作为54名患有mTBI的退伍军人横断面样本中渐进性组织损失的潜在指标，并与31名接受MRI评估的对照组进行比较。研究假设，相对于对照组，患有mTBI的退伍军人的平均皮质曲率会增加，部分原因是与组织体积损失相关的皮质重组。在60个双侧区域（31个脑沟，29个脑回）评估了平均皮质曲率。在研究的120个区域中，近50%显示mTBI组相对于对照组的平均皮质曲率显著增加，经过多重比较校正后，25%的区域仍具有显著性（所有区域，pFDR < 0.05）。这些差异在皮质的深部灰质区域最为明显。此外，还发现平均皮质曲率与灰质和白质体积之间存在显著关系（所有区域，p < 0.05）。这些发现表明各区域可能存在独特的萎缩模式，并表明mTBI导致的脑微结构变化对平均曲率测量敏感。
