Prematurely born children demonstrate white matter microstructural differences at 12 years of age, relative to term control subjects: an investigation of group and gender effects.

Objective: The goal was to use diffusion tensor imaging to test the hypothesis that prematurely born children demonstrate long-term, white matter, microstructural differences, relative to term control subjects.

Methods: Twenty-nine preterm subjects (birth weight: 600-1250 g) without neonatal brain injury and 22 matched, term, control subjects were evaluated at 12 years of age with MRI studies, including diffusion tensor imaging and volumetric imaging; voxel-based morphometric strategies were used to corroborate regional diffusion tensor imaging results. Subjects also underwent neurodevelopmental assessments.