Longitudinal Assessment of Abnormal Cortical Folding in Fetuses and Neonates With Isolated Non-Severe Ventriculomegaly

Abstract

Purpose: The impact of ventriculomegaly (VM) on cortical development and brain functionality has been extensively explored in existing literature. VM has been associated with higher risks of attention-deficit and hyperactivity disorders, as well as cognitive, language, and behavior deficits. Some studies have also shown a relationship between VM and cortical overgrowth, along with reduced cortical folding, both in fetuses and neonates. However, there is a lack of longitudinal studies that study this relationship from fetuses to neonates.

Method: We used a longitudinal dataset of 30 subjects (15 healthy controls and 15 subjects diagnosed with isolated non-severe VM (INSVM)) with structural MRI acquired in and ex utero for each subject. We focused on the impact of fetal INSVM on cortical development from a longitudinal perspective, from the fetal to the neonatal stage. Particularly, we examined the relationship between ventricular enlargement and both volumetric features and a multifaceted set of cortical folding measures, including local gyrification, sulcal depth, curvature, and cortical thickness.

Findings: Our results show significant effects of isolated non-severe VM (INSVM) compared to healthy controls, with reduced cortical thickness in specific brain regions such as the occipital, parietal, and frontal lobes.

Conclusion: These findings align with existing literature, confirming the presence of alterations in cortical growth and folding in subjects with isolated non-severe VM (INSVM) from the fetal to neonatal stage compared to controls.