Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Working Memory and Response Inhibition in Children with Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

• Published in: Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society Vol. 17; no. 6; pp. 1143 - 1152
• Main Authors: Krivitzky, Lauren S., Roebuck-Spencer, Tresa M., Roth, Robert M., Blackstone, Kaitlin, Johnson, Chad P., Gioia, Gerard
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, USA Cambridge University Press 01.11.2011
• Subjects: Adolescent; Brain - blood supply; Brain Injuries - complications; Brain Injuries - pathology; Brain Injuries - psychology; Brain Mapping; Child; Cognition Disorders - diagnosis; Cognition Disorders - etiology; Executive Function; Female; Humans; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; Inhibition (Psychology); Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; Memory; Memory Disorders - diagnosis; Memory Disorders - etiology; Memory, Short-Term - physiology; Neuropsychological Tests; Oxygen - blood; Pediatrics; Traumatic brain injury; United States > US; Cerebellum; Brain; Traumatic brain injury; Concussion; Post concussive symptoms; Inhibition; Prefrontal cortex
• ISSN: 1355-6177; 1469-7661
• DOI: 10.1017/S1355617711001226

The current pilot study examined functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) activation in children with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) during tasks of working memory and inhibitory control, both of which are vulnerable to impairment following mTBI. Thirteen children with symptomatic mTBI and a group of controls completed a version of the Tasks of Executive Control (TEC) during fMRI scanning. Both groups showed greater prefrontal activation in response to increased working memory load. Activation patterns did not differ between groups on the working memory aspects of the task, but children with mTBI showed greater activation in the posterior cerebellum with the addition of a demand for inhibitory control. Children with mTBI showed greater impairment on symptom report and “real world” measures of executive functioning, but not on traditional “paper and pencil” tasks. Likewise, cognitive testing did not correlate significantly with imaging results, whereas increased report of post-concussive symptoms were correlated with increased cerebellar activation. Overall, results provide some evidence for the utility of symptom report as an indicator of recovery and the hypothesis that children with mTBI may experience disrupted neural circuitry during recovery. Limitations of the study included a small sample size, wide age range, and lack of in-scanner accuracy data. (JINS, 2011, 17, 1143–1152)