title: fMRI investigation of working memory in adolescents with surgically treated congenital heart disease.
abstract: Adolescents and young adults with surgically treated congenital heart disease (CHD) have been shown to exhibit difficulties with executive functions; however, the neural underpinnings of these impairments have not been previously examined with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). The current study employed fMRI to examine the neural mechanisms during a letter n-back task of working memory compared to vigilance. Seventeen participants with CHD (Mage= 17.76 ± 1.72 years; 88% Caucasian; 30% female; mean IQ = 104.12 ± 15.15) were compared to 17 controls (Mage= 18.40 ± 1.74 years; 70% Caucasian; 30% female; mean IQ = 110.59 ± 5.28) with similar declining performance as the n-back became more challenging. Overall, both groups activated similar frontal-parietal working-memory networks as seen in previous literature; however, some significant differences were detected between the groups. Specifically, the participants with CHD demonstrated differences within the left precuneus and the right inferior frontal gyrus. Secondary analyses indicated that this difference appeared to be due to less task-induced deactivation (TID) in the CHD group during working memory and greater working-memory TID in the control group. In CHD, prefrontal fMRI deactivation on working-memory tasks correlated with improved working-memory performance. Future complementary neuroimaging research with functional connectivity is warranted to further examine the neural underpinnings of disrupted executive function in the long-term outcomes of CHD.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Psychology and the Neuroscience Institute , Georgia State University , Atlanta , Georgia , USA.|b The Georgia State University/Georgia Institute of Technology Joint Center for Advanced Brain Imaging , Atlanta , Georgia , USA.
authors.forename: Tricia Z
authors.initials: TZ
authors.lastname: King
authors.affiliation: a Department of Psychology and the Neuroscience Institute , Georgia State University , Atlanta , Georgia , USA.
authors.forename: Kristen M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.affiliation: c Department of Neuropsychology , Children's Healthcare of Atlanta , Atlanta , Georgia , USA.
authors.forename: Thomas G
authors.initials: TG
authors.lastname: Burns
authors.affiliation: d Department of Radiology , Children's Healthcare of Atlanta , Atlanta , Georgia , USA.
authors.forename: Binjian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: b The Georgia State University/Georgia Institute of Technology Joint Center for Advanced Brain Imaging , Atlanta , Georgia , USA.
authors.forename: Jaemin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.affiliation: d Department of Radiology , Children's Healthcare of Atlanta , Atlanta , Georgia , USA.|e Department of Radiology , Emory University , Atlanta , Georgia , USA.
authors.forename: Richard A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: f Department of Cardiology , Emory University , Atlanta , Georgia , USA.|g Sibley Heart Center of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta , Atlanta , Georgia , USA.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Drossner
authors.affiliation: f Department of Cardiology , Emory University , Atlanta , Georgia , USA.|g Sibley Heart Center of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta , Atlanta , Georgia , USA.
authors.forename: William T
authors.initials: WT
authors.lastname: Mahle
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008570:Memory, Short-Term / Q000502:physiology*; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Cardiac; executive function; letter n-back; neuroimaging; pediatric