title: Validity of semi-quantitative scale for brain MRI in unilateral cerebral palsy due to periventricular white matter lesions: Relationship with hand sensorimotor function and structural connectivity.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To provide first evidence of construct validity of a semi-quantitative scale for brain structural MRI (sqMRI scale) in children with unilateral cerebral palsy (UCP) secondary to periventricular white matter (PWM) lesions, by examining the relationship with hand sensorimotor function and whole brain structural connectivity.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional study of 50 children with UCP due to PWM lesions using 3 T (MRI), diffusion MRI and assessment of hand sensorimotor function. We explored the relationship of lobar, hemispheric and global scores on the sqMRI scale, with fractional anisotropy (FA), as a measure of brain white matter microstructure, and with hand sensorimotor measures (Assisting Hand Assessment, AHA; Jebsen-Taylor Test for Hand Function, JTTHF; Melbourne Assessment of Unilateral Upper Limb Function, MUUL; stereognosis; 2-point discrimination).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Lobar and hemispheric scores on the sqMRI scale contralateral to the clinical side of hemiplegia correlated with sensorimotor paretic hand function measures and FA of a number of brain structural connections, including connections of brain areas involved in motor control (postcentral, precentral and paracentral gyri in the parietal lobe). More severe lesions correlated with lower sensorimotor performance, with the posterior limb of internal capsule score being the strongest contributor to impaired hand function.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The sqMRI scale demonstrates first evidence of construct validity against impaired motor and sensory function measures and brain structural connectivity in a cohort of children with UCP due to PWM lesions. More severe lesions correlated with poorer paretic hand sensorimotor function and impaired structural connectivity in the hemisphere contralateral to the clinical side of hemiplegia. The quantitative structural MRI scoring may be a useful clinical tool for studying brain structure-function relationships but requires further validation in other populations of CP.
authors.affiliation: IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Simona
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fiori
authors.affiliation: IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris, Pisa, Italy ; University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Guzzetta
authors.affiliation: Australia E-Health Research Centre, Brisbane, Australia ; University of Queensland, School of Medicine, Brisbane, QLD, Australia ; Department of Computing, Imperial College London, Biomedical Image Analysis Group, London, UK.
authors.forename: Kerstin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pannek
authors.affiliation: School of Population Health, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia ; Queensland Children's Medical Research Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia.
authors.forename: Robert S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Ware
authors.affiliation: Institute of Clinical Physiology, Italian National Research Council, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rossi
authors.affiliation: Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Kinesiology and Rehabilitation Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Katrijn
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Klingels
authors.affiliation: Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Kinesiology and Rehabilitation Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Hilde
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Feys
authors.affiliation: Academic Discipline of Medical Imaging, Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital, QLD, Australia.
authors.forename: Alan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Coulthard
authors.affiliation: IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris, Pisa, Italy ; University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cioni
authors.affiliation: Australia E-Health Research Centre, Brisbane, Australia.
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rose
authors.affiliation: Queesland Cerebral Palsy and Rehabilitation Research Centre, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.
authors.forename: Roslyn N
authors.initials: RN
authors.lastname: Boyd
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002547:Cerebral Palsy / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology*; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D063132:Connectome; D038524:Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D005260:Female; D006225:Hand / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006429:Hemiplegia / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D007969:Leukomalacia, Periventricular / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
keywords: AHA, Assisting Hand Assessment; Brain structure; CP, cerebral palsy; Diffusion; FA, fractional anisotropy; GMFCS, Gross Motor Function Classification System; HARDI; JTTHF, Jebsen–Taylor test of hand function; MACS, Manual Ability Classification System; MRI, magnetic resonance imaging; MUUL, Melbourne Assessment of Unilateral Upper Limb function; Magnetic resonance imaging; PWM, periventricular white matter; Sensorimotor function; Unilateral cerebral palsy; sqMRI, semi-quantitative MRI