Effects of Preterm Birth on Cortical Thickness Measured in Adolescence
Open Access
- 3 June 2010
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Oxford University Press (OUP) in Cerebral Cortex
- Vol. 21 (2), 300-306
- https://doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bhq095
Abstract
Despite the extensive research into brain development after preterm birth, few studies have investigated its long-term effects on cortical thickness. The Stockholm Neonatal Project included infants between 1988 and 1993 with birth weight (BW) ≤1500 g. Using a previously published method, cortical thickness was estimated on T1-weighted 3D anatomical images acquired from 74 ex-preterm and 69 term-born adolescents (mean age 14.92 years). The cortex was significantly thinner in ex-preterm individuals in focal regions of the temporal and parietal cortices as indicated by voxel-wise t-tests. In addition, large regions around the central sulcus and temporal lobe as well as parts of the frontal and occipital lobes tended also to be thinner in the ex-preterm group. Although these results were not significant on voxel-wise tests, the spatially coherent arrangement of the thinning in ex-preterm individuals made it notable. When the group of ex-preterm individuals was divided by gestational age or BW, the thinning tended to be more pronounced in the anterior and posterior poles in those born nearer term or with a BW closer to 1500 g. These results support the notion that preterm birth is a risk factor for long-term development of cortical thickness.Keywords
This publication has 47 references indexed in Scilit:
- The hard problemActa Paediatrica, 2008
- Voxel-based cortical thickness measurements in MRINeuroImage, 2008
- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder is characterized by a delay in cortical maturationProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2007
- Characteristics of Neonatal Units That Care for Very Preterm Infants in Europe: Results From the MOSAIC StudyPediatrics, 2007
- A fast diffeomorphic image registration algorithmNeuroImage, 2007
- Detection of Impaired Growth of the Corpus Callosum in Premature InfantsPublished by American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) ,2006
- Cerebral cortex thickness in 15-year-old adolescents with low birth weight measured by an automated MRI-based methodBrain, 2005
- Thinning of the Cerebral Cortex in AgingCerebral Cortex, 2004
- Developmental risks and protective factors for influencing cognitive outcome at 5?? years of age in very-low-birthweight childrenDevelopmental Medicine and Child Neurology, 2002
- Is post-hypoxic-ischemic cell damage associated with excessive ATP consumption rather than a failure of ATP production?Acta Paediatrica, 1997