title: Cortical thickness and behavior abnormalities in children born preterm.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To identify long-term effects of preterm birth and of periventricular leukomalacia (PVL) on cortical thickness (CTh). To study the relationship between CTh and cognitive-behavioral abnormalities.
  
  
  METHODS
  We performed brain magnetic resonance imaging on 22 preterm children with PVL, 14 preterm children with no evidence of PVL and 22 full-term peers. T1-weighted images were analyzed with FreeSurfer software. All participants underwent cognitive and behavioral assessments by means of the Wechsler Intelligence Scales for Children-Fourth Edition (WISC-IV) and the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL).
  
  
  RESULTS
  We did not find global CTh differences between the groups. However, a thinner cortex was found in left postcentral, supramarginal, and caudal middle rostral gyri in preterm children with no evidence of PVL than in the full-term controls, while PVL preterm children showed thicker cortex in right pericalcarine and left rostral middle frontal areas than in preterm children with no evidence of PVL. In the PVL group, internalizing and externalizing scores correlated mainly with CTh in frontal areas. Attentional scores were found to be higher in PVL and correlated with CTh increments in right frontal areas.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The preterm group with no evidence of PVL, when compared with full-term children, showed evidence of a different pattern of regional thinning in the cortical gray matter. In turn, PVL preterm children exhibited atypical increases in CTh that may underlie their prevalent behavioral problems.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychobiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Leire
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zubiaurre-Elorza
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Soria-Pastor
authors.forename: Carme
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Junque
authors.forename: Roser
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sala-Llonch
authors.forename: Dolors
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Segarra
authors.forename: Nuria
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bargallo
authors.forename: Alfons
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Macaya
mesh_terms: D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D002648:Child; D002652:Child Behavior; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests