Surface-based morphometry study of the brain in benign childhood epilepsy with centrotemporal spikes
Zhengzhen Li, Jingjing Zhang, Fuqin Wang, Yang Yang, Jie Hu, Qinghui Li, Maoqiang Tian, Tonghuan Li, Bingsheng Huang, Heng Liu, Tijiang Zhang
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The study aimed to explore cortical morphology in benign childhood epilepsy with centrotemporal spikes (BECTS) and the relationship between cortical characteristics and age of onset and intelligence quotient (IQ). METHODS: -tests [P<0.05, family-wise error (FWE) corrected]. Relationships between abnormal cortical morphological changes and age of onset and IQ, which included verbal intelligence quotient (VIQ), performance intelligence quotient (PIQ), and full-scale intelligence quotient (FIQ) were investigated with Spearman correlation analysis (P<0.05, uncorrected). RESULTS: The BECTS patients showed extensive cortical thinning predominantly in bilateral frontal, temporal regions, and limbic system. Cortical gyrification increased in the left hemisphere and partial right hemisphere, and the decreased cortical gyrification was only in the left hemisphere. The increased sulcal depth was the left fusiform gyrus. There are no statistically significant differences in the fractal dimension. Correlation analysis revealed the negative correlation between age of onset and cortical thickness in the right precentral gyrus. It also revealed the negative correlation between the age of onset and cortical gyrification in the left inferior parietal gyrus. Also, there was negative correlation between VIQ and cortical gyrification in the left supramarginal gyrus of BECTS patients. CONCLUSIONS: This study reveals aberrant cortical thickness, cortical gyrification, and sulcal depth of BECTS in areas related to cognitive functions including language, attention and memory, and the correlation between some brain regions and VIQ and age of onset, providing a potential marker of early neurodevelopmental disturbance and cognitive dysfunction in BECTS.