The optic radiations and reading development: A longitudinal study of children born term and preterm.

Purpose: To determine if reading development between ages 6 and 8 years related to changes in fractional anisotropy (FA) in the optic radiations (OR), and if these associations were similar in children born full term (FT) and preterm (PT) and in language tracts.

Methods: FT (n = 34) and PT (n = 34) children completed the Word Identification subtest of the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test at 6, 7, and 8 years. Diffusion MRI (96-directions, b=2500 sec/mm) was acquired at 6 and 8 years.

Neonatal inflammation and near-term white matter microstructure in infants born very preterm.

Background: Severe neonatal inflammatory conditions in very preterm infants (VPT: <32 weeks gestational age, GA) are linked to adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes. Differences in white matter (WM) microstructure of the corpus callosum (CC) have been observed at age 6 in VPT children with a history of severe neonatal inflammation. The goal of this study was to determine whether these CC differences can be detected at term-equivalent age using diffusion MRI (dMRI), and whether neonatal inflammation is associated with altered WM in additional tracts implicated in the encephalopathy of prematurity.

Listening to Mom in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A randomized trial of increased maternal speech exposure on white matter connectivity in infants born preterm.

Background: Early speech experiences have been proposed to contribute to the development of brain structures involved in processing spoken language. However, previous research has been limited to correlational studies. Here, we conducted an RCT with preterm neonates to determine whether increased exposure to maternal speech during NICU hospitalization is causally linked to structural white matter maturation.

Associations of behavioral problems with white matter circuits connecting to the frontal lobes in school-aged children born at term and preterm.

Introduction: This study investigated whether internalizing and externalizing behavioral problems in children were associated with fractional anisotropy of white matter tracts connecting other brain regions to the frontal lobes. We contrasted patterns of association between children born at term (FT) and very preterm (PT: gestational age at birth =< 32 weeks).

Methods: Parents completed the Child Behavior Checklist/6-18 questionnaire to quantify behavioral problems when their children were age 8 years (N = 36 FT and 37 PT).

Probing white matter microstructure in youth with chronic pain and its relation to catastrophizing using neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging.

Chronic pain is common in young people and can have a major life impact. Despite the burden of chronic pain, mechanisms underlying chronic pain development and persistence are still poorly understood. Specifically, white matter (WM) connectivity has remained largely unexplored in pediatric chronic pain.

Randomized controlled double-blind trial of methylprednisolone versus placebo in patients with post-COVID-19 syndrome and cognitive deficits: study protocol of the post-corona-virus immune treatment (PoCoVIT) trial.

Introduction: Post-COVID-19 Syndrome (PCS) includes neurological manifestations, especially fatigue and cognitive deficits. Immune dysregulation, autoimmunity, endothelial dysfunction, viral persistence, and viral reactivation are discussed as potential pathophysiological mechanisms. The post-corona-virus immune treatment (PoCoVIT) trial is a phase 2a randomized, controlled, double-blind trial designed to evaluate the effect of methylprednisolone versus placebo on cognitive impairment in PCS.

IA-PACS-CFS: a double-blinded, randomized, sham-controlled, exploratory trial of immunoadsorption in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) including patients with post-acute COVID-19 CFS (PACS-CFS).

Background: Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a severely debilitating condition which markedly restricts activity and function of affected people. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic ME/CFS related to post-acute COVID-19 syndrome (PACS) can be diagnosed in a subset of patients presenting with persistent fatigue 6 months after a mostly mild SARS-CoV-2 infection by fulfillment of the Canadian Consensus Criteria (CCC 2003). Induction of autoimmunity after viral infection is a mechanism under intensive investigation.

Early, low-dose hydrocortisone and near-term brain connectivity in extremely preterm infants.

Background: Postnatal steroids are used to prevent bronchopulmonary dysplasia in extremely preterm infants but may have adverse effects on brain development. We assessed connectivity metrics of major cerebral and cerebellar white matter pathways at near-term gestational age among infants who did or did not receive a standardized regimen of hydrocortisone during the first 10 days of life.

Methods: Retrospective cohort study.

Associations of behavioral problems with white matter circuits connecting to the frontal lobes in school-aged children born at term and preterm.

Introduction: This study investigated whether behavioral problems in children were associated with fractional anisotropy (FA) of white matter tracts connecting from other brain regions to right and left frontal lobes. We considered internalizing and externalizing behavioral problems separately and contrasted patterns of associations in children born at term and very preterm.

Methods: Parents completed the Child Behavior Checklist/6-18 questionnaire to quantify behavioral problems when their children were age 8 years (N=36 FT and 37 PT).

Fighting Post-COVID and ME/CFS - development of curative therapies.

The sequela of COVID-19 include a broad spectrum of symptoms that fall under the umbrella term post-COVID-19 condition or syndrome (PCS). Immune dysregulation, autoimmunity, endothelial dysfunction, viral persistence, and viral reactivation have been identified as potential mechanisms. However, there is heterogeneity in expression of biomarkers, and it is unknown yet whether these distinguish different clinical subgroups of PCS.

The effect of biofeedback pelvic floor training with ACTICORE1 on fecal incontinence A prospective multicentric cohort pilot study.

Introduction: Fecal incontinence refers to the inability to pass stool in a localized and timely manner resulting in the involuntary loss of intestinal contents such as air, intestinal mucus or stool. The prevalence of fecal incontinence in the general population is approximately 2-21%. Women are more frequently affected than men.

Spatiotemporal changes in along-tract profilometry of cerebellar peduncles in cerebellar mutism syndrome.

Cerebellar mutism syndrome, characterised by mutism, emotional lability and cerebellar motor signs, occurs in up to 39% of children following resection of medulloblastoma, the most common malignant posterior fossa tumour of childhood. Its pathophysiology remains unclear, but prior studies have implicated damage to the superior cerebellar peduncles. In this study, the objective was to conduct high-resolution spatial profilometry of the cerebellar peduncles and identify anatomic biomarkers of cerebellar mutism syndrome.

Associations of Behavioral Problems and White Matter Properties of the Cerebellar Peduncles in Boys and Girls Born Full Term and Preterm.

Accumulating evidence suggests that the role of cerebellum includes regulation of behaviors; cerebellar impairment may lead to behavioral problems. Behavioral problems differ by sex: internalizing problems are more common in girls, externalizing problems in boys. Behavioral problems are also elevated in children born preterm (PT) compared to children born full term (FT).

The Effect of an Abdominal Binder on Postoperative Pain After Laparoscopic Incisional Hernia Repair–A Multicenter, Randomized Pilot Trial (ABIHR-I) of the Intraperitoneal Onlay-Mesh Technique.

Background: Incisional hernias with apertures measuring less than 7 cm can generally be treated adequately with the laparoscopic intraperitoneal onlay-mesh (IPOM) technique. The wearing of an abdominal binder after surgery is often recommended in order to promote wound healing and prevent recurrent herniation. We carried out a multicenter, randomized pilot trial to evaluate the utility of abdominal binders.

White Matter Microstructural Properties of the Cerebellar Peduncles Predict Change in Symptoms of Psychopathology in Adolescent Girls.

Internalizing symptoms typically emerge in adolescence and are more prevalent in females than in males; in contrast, externalizing symptoms typically emerge in childhood and are more commonly observed in males. Previous research has implicated aspects of white matter organization, including fractional anisotropy (FA), of cerebral tracts in both internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Although the cerebellum has been posited to integrate limbic and cortical regions, its role in psychopathology is not well understood.

Effects of Age on White Matter Microstructure in Children With Neurofibromatosis Type 1.

Children with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) often report cognitive challenges, though the etiology of such remains an area of active investigation. With the advent of treatments that may affect white matter microstructure, understanding the effects of age on white matter aberrancies in NF1 becomes crucial in determining the timing of such therapeutic interventions. A cross-sectional study was performed with diffusion tensor imaging from 18 NF1 children and 26 age-matched controls.

Investigating the effects of handedness on the consistency of lateralization for speech production and semantic processing tasks using functional transcranial Doppler sonography.

The left hemisphere is dominant for language in most people, but lateralization strength varies between different tasks and individuals. A large body of literature has shown that handedness is associated with lateralization: left handers have weaker language lateralization on average, and a greater incidence of atypical (right hemisphere) lateralization; but typically, these studies have relied on a single measure of language lateralization. Here we consider the relationships between lateralization for two different language tasks.

Neonatal white matter tract microstructure and 2-year language outcomes after preterm birth.

Aim: To determine whether variability in diffusion MRI (dMRI) white matter tract metrics, obtained in a cohort of preterm infants prior to neonatal hospital discharge, would be associated with language outcomes at age 2 years, after consideration of age at scan and number of major neonatal complications.

Method: 30 children, gestational age 28.9 (2.

Associations of Reading Efficiency with White Matter Properties of the Cerebellar Peduncles in Children.

Reading in children has been associated with microstructural properties of the cerebellar peduncles, the white matter pathways connecting the cerebellum to the cerebrum. In this study, we used two independent neuroimaging modalities to assess which features of the cerebellar peduncles would be associated with reading. Twenty-three 8-year-old children were evaluated on word reading efficiency and imaged using diffusion MRI (dMRI) and quantitative T1 relaxometry (qT1).

Stereotactic laser ablation for completion corpus callosotomy.

Objective: Completion corpus callosotomy can offer further remission from disabling seizures when a prior partial corpus callosotomy has failed and residual callosal tissue is identified on imaging. Traditional microsurgical approaches to section residual fibers carry risks associated with multiple craniotomies and the proximity to the medially oriented motor cortices. Laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) represents a minimally invasive approach for the ablation of residual fibers following a prior partial corpus callosotomy.

Arterial spin labeling perfusion changes of the frontal lobes in children with posterior fossa syndrome.

Objective: Posterior fossa syndrome (PFS) is a common complication following the resection of posterior fossa tumors in children. The pathophysiology of PFS remains incompletely elucidated; however, the wide-ranging symptoms of PFS suggest the possibility of widespread cortical dysfunction. In this study, the authors utilized arterial spin labeling (ASL), an MR perfusion modality that provides quantitative measurements of cerebral blood flow without the use of intravenous contrast, to assess cortical blood flow in patients with PFS.

White Matter Plasticity in Reading-Related Pathways Differs in Children Born Preterm and at Term: A Longitudinal Analysis.

Children born preterm (PT) are at risk for white matter injuries based on complications of prematurity. They learn to read but on average perform below peers born full term (FT). Studies have yet to establish whether properties of white matter pathways at the onset of learning to read are associated with individual variation later in reading development in PT children.

Predicting text reading skills at age 8 years in children born preterm and at term.

Background: Children born preterm are at risk for developing reading difficulties and for decrements in other cognitive skills compared to children born at term.

Aims: To assess how domains of function, often negatively impacted by preterm birth, predict reading development in children born preterm and at term.

Study Design: Longitudinal descriptive cohort study.

Age-Dependent White Matter Characteristics of the Cerebellar Peduncles from Infancy Through Adolescence.

Cerebellum-cerebrum connections are essential for many motor and cognitive functions and cerebellar disorders are prevalent in childhood. The middle (MCP), inferior (ICP), and superior cerebellar peduncles (SCP) are the major white matter pathways that permit communication between the cerebellum and the cerebrum. Knowledge about the microstructural properties of these cerebellar peduncles across childhood is limited.