Diffusion kurtosis imaging reveals abnormal gray matter and white matter development in some brain regions of children with attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder

• Published in: Journal of neuroscience research Vol. 102; no. 1; pp. e25284 - n/a
• Main Authors: Tang, Shilong, Liu, Xianfan, Nie, Lisha, Qian, Fangfang, Chen, Wushuang, He, Ling, Yang, Mei
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.01.2024
• Subjects: Anisotropy; Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder; Brain; Caudate nucleus; Children; Diffusion; diffusion kurtosis imaging; Frontal lobe; Globus pallidus; Hyperactivity; Imaging; Imaging techniques; Kurtosis; magnetic resonance imaging; Neuroimaging; Nucleus; Putamen; Substantia alba; Substantia grisea; Temporal lobe; Workstations; attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder; diffusion kurtosis imaging; magnetic resonance imaging; brain; children
• ISSN: 0360-4012; 1097-4547
• DOI: 10.1002/jnr.25284

In this study, we explored the application of diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI) technology in the brains of children with attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Seventy‐two children with ADHD and 79 age‐ and sex‐matched healthy controls were included in the study. All children were examined by means of 3D T1‐weighted image, DKI, and conventional sequence scanning. The volume and DKI parameters of each brain region were obtained by software postprocessing (GE ADW 4.6 workstation) and compared between the two groups of children to determine the imaging characteristics of children with ADHD. The result showed the total brain volume was lower in children with ADHD than in healthy children (p < .05). The gray and white matter volumes in the frontal lobe, temporal lobe, hippocampus, caudate nucleus, putamen, globus pallidus, and other brain regions were lower in children with ADHD than in healthy children (p < .05). The axial kurtosis (Ka), mean kurtosis (MK), fractional anisotropy (FA), and radial kurtosis(Kr) values in the frontal lobe, temporal lobe, and caudate nucleus of children with ADHD were lower than those of healthy children, while the mean diffusivity(MD) and fractional anisotropy of kurtosis (FAK) values were higher than those of healthy children (p < .05). Additionally, the Ka, MK, FA, and Kr values in the frontal lobe, caudate nucleus, and temporal lobe could be used to distinguish children with ADHD (AUC > .05, p < .05). In conclusion, DKI showed abnormal gray matter and white matter development in some brain regions of children with ADHD. DKI showed that children with ADHD had abnormal gray matter and white matter development; DKI parameters could be one of the brain area markers in children with ADHD.