Subacute functional connectivity correlates with cognitive recovery six months after stroke

NeuroImage: Clinical

卷:29

Brunno Machado de Campos¹  Lenise Valler¹  Jéssica Elias Vicentini¹  Sara Regina Almeida¹  Li Min Li¹  Marina Weiler²  Raphael Fernandes Casseb³ 

[1] Brazilian Institute of Neuroscience and Neurotechnology – Brainn, Department of Neurology, Faculty of Medical Sciences - University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Brazil;

[2] Neurocognitive Aging Section, Laboratory of Behavioral Neuroscience, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health (NIA/NIH), Intramural Research Program, United States;

[3] Seaman Family MR Research Center, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Canada;

关键词: Chronic ischemia;    Cognition;    Recovery;    Functional magnetic resonance imaging;    Resting-state;   

DOI  :  

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Background and purpose: Cognitive impairment is a common consequence of stroke, and the rewiring of the surviving brain circuits might contribute to cognitive recovery. Studies investigating how the functional connectivity of networks change across time and whether their remapping relates to cognitive recovery in stroke patients are scarce. We aimed to investigate whether resting-state functional connectivity was associated with cognitive performance in stroke patients and if any alterations in these networks were correlated with cognitive recovery. Methods: Using an fMRI ROI-ROI approach, we compared the ipsilesional, contralesional and interhemispheric functional connectivity of three resting-state networks involved in cognition – the Default Mode (DMN), Salience (SN) and Central Executive Networks (CEN), in subacute ischemic stroke patients (time 1, n = 37, stroke onset: 24.32 ± 7.44 days, NIHSS: 2.66 ± 3.45) with cognitively healthy controls (n = 20). Patients were reassessed six months after the stroke event (time 2, n = 20, stroke onset: 182.05 ± 8.17 days) to verify the subsequent reorganization of functional connections and whether such reorganization was associated with cognitive recovery. Results: At time 1, patients had weaker interhemispheric connectivity in the DMN than controls; better cognitive performance at time 1 was associated with stronger interhemispheric and ipsilesional DMN connectivity, and weaker contralesional SN connectivity. At time 2, there were no changes in functional connectivity in stroke patients, compared to time 1. Better cognitive recovery measured at time 2 (time 2 – time 1) was associated with stronger functional connectivity in the DMN, and weaker interhemispheric subacute connectivity in the SN, both from time 1. Conclusions: Stroke disrupts the functional connectivity of the DMN, not only at the lesioned hemisphere but also between hemispheres. Six months after the stroke event, we could not detect the remapping of networks. Cognitive recovery was associated with the connectivity of both the DMN and SN of time 1. Our findings may be helpful for facilitating further understanding of the potential mechanisms underlying post-stroke cognitive performance.

【 授权许可】

Unknown