Longitudinal Patterns of Functional Connectivity in Moderate-to-Severe Traumatic Brain Injury

• DOI: 10.1089/neu.2022.0242
• Publication Date: 2022-11-11T11:00:33Z
• Authors: Isis So; Liesel-Ann C. Meusel; Bhanu Sharma; Georges A. Monette; Brenda Colella; Anne L. Wheeler; Jennifer S. Rabin; David J. Mikulis; Robin E.A. Green
• Keywords: Adult; Male; Brain Mapping; Brain; Middle Aged; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Cohort Studies; Young Adult; 03 medical and health sciences; 0302 clinical medicine; Brain Injuries; Brain Injuries, Traumatic; Humans; Female

Longitudinal neuroimaging studies aid our understanding of recovery mechanisms in moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI); however, there is a dearth longitudinal functional connectivity research. Our aim was to characterize patterns two clinically important networks, the frontoparietal network (FPN) and default mode (DMN), TBI. This inception cohort study prospectively collected data used resting-state magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) FPN DMN. Forty adults with TBI (mean ± standard deviation [SD]; age = 39.53 16.49 years, education 13.92 3.20 lowest Glasgow Coma Scale score 6.63 3.24, sex 70% male) were scanned at approximately 0.5, 1–1.5, 3+ years post-injury. Seventeen healthy, uninjured participants SD; 38.91 15.57 15.11 2.71 29% baseline 11 months afterwards. Group independent component analyses linear mixed-effects modeling splines that contained knot 1.5 post-injury employed investigate changes, associations covariates, including age, sex, severity. In patients TBI, right increased from 0.5 (unstandardized estimate 0.19, error [SE] 0.07, p 0.009), slope change opposite direction, positive negative (estimate −0.21, SE 0.11, marginally declined afterwards −0.10, 0.06, 0.079). Functional DMN 0.15, 0.05, 0.006), −0.19, 0.08, 0.021), estimated decline −0.04, 0.04, 0.303). Similarly, left 0.002), −0.18, 0.008), thereafter 0.03, 0.254). At post-injury, showed hypoconnectivity compared baseline. Covariates not significantly associated any models. Findings early improvement but tapering possible suggest compensatory effects are time-limited. These later reductions mirror growing evidence behavioral structural chronic Targeting such declines represents novel avenue research offers potential for improving clinical outcomes.