Subcortical Volume Loss in the Thalamus, Putamen, and Pallidum, Induced by Traumatic Brain Injury, Is Associated With Motor Performance Deficits.
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) has been associated with altered microstructural organization of white matter (WM) and reduced gray matter (GM). Although disrupted WM organization has been linked to poorer motor performance, the predictive value of GM atrophy for motor impairments in TBI remains unclear.



Here, we investigated TBI-induced GM volumetric abnormalities and uniquely examined their relationship with bimanual motor impairments.



22 moderate to severe TBI patients (mean age = 25.9 years, standard deviation [SD] = 4.9 years; time since injury = 4.7 years, SD = 3.7 years) and 27 age- and gender-matched controls (mean age = 23.4 years; SD = 3.8 years) completed bimanual tasks and a structural magnetic resonance imaging scan. Cortical and subcortical GM volumes were extracted and compared between groups using FreeSurfer. The association between bimanual performance and GM volumetric measures was investigated using partial correlations.



Relative to controls, patients performed significantly poorer on the bimanual tasks and demonstrated significantly smaller total GM as well as overall and regional subcortical GM. However, the groups did not show significant differences in regional cortical GM volume. The majority of the results remained significant even after excluding TBI patients with focal lesions, suggesting that TBI-induced volume reductions were predominantly caused by diffuse injury. Importantly, atrophy of the thalamus, putamen, and pallidum correlated significantly with poorer bimanual performance within the TBI group.



Our results reveal that GM atrophy is associated with motor impairments in TBI, providing new insights into the etiology of motor control impairments following brain trauma.
Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, Biomedical Sciences Group, KU Leuven, Belgium Jolien.gooijers@faber.kuleuven.be.
Jolien
J
Gooijers
Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, Biomedical Sciences Group, KU Leuven, Belgium.
Sima
S
Chalavi
Center for Epilepsy and Acquired Brain Injury (CEPOS), Duffel, Belgium.
Kurt
K
Beeckmans
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University Hospital Leuven - Campus Pellenberg, Belgium.
Karla
K
Michiels
Rehabilitation Hospital RevArte, Edegem, Belgium.
Christophe
C
Lafosse
Medical Imaging Center, Group Biomedical Sciences, KU Leuven, Belgium.
Stefan
S
Sunaert
Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, Biomedical Sciences Group, KU Leuven, Belgium Leuven Research Institute for Neuroscience and Disease (LIND), Belgium.
Stephan P
SP
Swinnen
D000328:Adult; D000070642:Brain Injuries, Traumatic / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D005917:Globus Pallidus / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D011596:Psychomotor Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D011699:Putamen / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D013788:Thalamus / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D055815:Young Adult
bimanual motor performance; cortical and subcortical volume; global volume; gray matter; traumatic brain injury