Cainelli Elisa, Simonato Manuela, Sartori Anna, Padalino Massimo, Sartori Stefano, Ancona Claudio, Vedovelli Luca, Cogo Paola, Bisiacchi Patrizia
Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Via Venezia, 8, 35133, Padua, Italy.
PCare Laboratory, Fondazione Istituto Di Ricerca Pediatrica "Citta Della Speranza", Padua, Italy.
Pediatr Cardiol. 2025 Jul 25. doi: 10.1007/s00246-025-03958-7.
Children suffering from congenital heart disease (CHD) are at risk of developing a variety of neurocognitive sequelae. The etiology of these impairments is thought to be multifactorial, but the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. The aim of this study was to compare the power spectra of postoperative electroencephalographic (EEG) activity of children with CHD undergoing cardiac surgery and controls to highlight differences in brain oscillations and cerebral architecture. We recruited 35 children with CHD undergoing cardiac surgery within six months of life (CHD group, M = 22, age at evaluation 111 days [38; 173]) and 35 age-matched healthy controls (control group, M = 24). After surgery, immediately before discharge, CHD children underwent multichannel EEG and psychomotor evaluation with the Griffiths Mental Developmental Scale (GMDS). At the psychomotor evaluation, 25/35 (71%) children in CHD group had a normal GMDS total score, 7/35 (20%) were borderline, and 3/35 (5%) were impaired. The EEG activity of CHD and controls differed significantly in the alpha (F = 23.662, p < .001) and beta (F = 36.457, p < .001) bands. Only for the CHD group did EEG power not correlate with age. CHD children exhibit marked differences in the EEG spectrum, particularly in the medium-high frequencies, suggesting an abnormal development of cerebral networks sustaining early cognitive milestones.
患有先天性心脏病（CHD）的儿童有发生多种神经认知后遗症的风险。这些损伤的病因被认为是多因素的，但潜在机制尚不清楚。本研究的目的是比较接受心脏手术的CHD儿童与对照组术后脑电图（EEG）活动的功率谱，以突出脑振荡和脑结构的差异。我们招募了35名在出生后6个月内接受心脏手术的CHD儿童（CHD组，男性=22名，评估时年龄为111天[38；173]）和35名年龄匹配的健康对照儿童（对照组，男性=24名）。手术后，在出院前，CHD儿童接受了多通道脑电图检查，并使用格里菲斯心理发展量表（GMDS）进行了心理运动评估。在心理运动评估中，CHD组35名儿童中有25名（71%）GMDS总分正常，7名（20%）处于临界状态，3名（5%）受损。CHD组和对照组的脑电图活动在α（F=23.662，p<0.001）和β（F=36.457，p<0.001）频段存在显著差异。仅在CHD组中，脑电图功率与年龄无关。CHD儿童在脑电图频谱上表现出明显差异，尤其是在中高频段，这表明维持早期认知里程碑的脑网络发育异常。
