Brain development in children with new onset epilepsy: a prospective controlled cohort investigation.
OBJECTIVE
To characterize prospective neurodevelopmental changes in brain structure in children with new and recent-onset epilepsy compared to healthy controls.


METHODS
Thirty-four healthy controls (mean age 12.9 years) and 38 children with new/recent-onset idiopathic epilepsy (mean age 12.9 years) underwent 1.5 T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at baseline and 2 years later. Prospective changes in total cerebral and lobar gray and white matter volumes were compared within and between groups.


RESULTS
Prospective changes in gray matter volume were comparable for the epilepsy and control groups, with significant (p < 0.0001) reduction in total cerebral gray matter, due primarily to significant (p < 0.001) reductions in frontal and parietal gray matter. Prospective white matter volume changes differed between groups. Controls exhibited a significant (p = 0.0012) increase in total cerebral white matter volume due to significant (p < 0.001) volume increases in the frontal, parietal, and temporal lobes. In contrast, the epilepsy group exhibited nonsignificant white matter volume change in the total cerebrum (p = 0.51) as well as across all lobes (all p's > 0.06). The group by white matter volume change interactions were significant for total cerebrum (p = 0.04) and frontal lobe (p = 0.04).


CONCLUSIONS
Children with new and recent-onset epilepsy exhibit an altered pattern of brain development characterized by delayed age-appropriate increase in white matter volume. These findings may affect cognitive development through reduced brain connectivity and may also be related to the impairments in executive function commonly reported in this population.
Hermann
Bruce P
BP
Department of Neurology, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, Wisconsin 53792, USA. hermann@neurology.wisc.edu
Dabbs
Kevin
K
Becker
Tara
T
Jones
Jana E
JE
Myers y Gutierrez
Adan
A
Wendt
Gary
G
Koehn
Monica A
MA
Sheth
Raj
R
Seidenberg
Michael
M
D000293:Adolescent; D017668:Age of Onset; D001284:Atrophy / Q000473:pathology; D001921:Brain / Q000254:growth & development / Q000473:pathology*; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000254:growth & development / Q000473:pathology; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000254:growth & development / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008297:Male; D010296:Parietal Lobe / Q000254:growth & development / Q000473:pathology; D011446:Prospective Studies
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