Brain development
How does preterm birth affect newborn brain networks?
Open access · cc by · source: Europe PMC
Preterm birth disrupts the development of functional brain networks at normal term age, causing widespread reductions in network strength alongside an abnormal increase in specific movement-related connections.
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How does preterm birth affect newborn brain networks?
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337 newborn infants
The final study population therefore consisted of 337 infants, divided into three groups: term-born infants scanned at 43.5-44.5 weeks PMA, who were used to define the normative set of RSNs and excluded from all subsequent subject-level analyses (i); and the remaining infants scanned at 37-43.5 weeks PMA, including both term-born (ii) and preterm-born (iii) infants ().
24 healthy, full-term infants
Eleven RSNs were identified by group ICA in a sub-sample of term-born infants scanned between 43.5 and 44.5 weeks PMA ( n =24), who were excluded from any further analyses.
Key findings
Full-term infants showed a clear development pattern where primary sensory and motor networks were already mature, while complex thinking networks were still fragmented and maturing. In contrast, preterm infants scanned at their expected birth age showed a 23-41% reduction in overall brain network strength across all networks compared to full-term infants. However, preterm infants also exhibited an abnormal increase in connectivity in a brain region involved in coordinating physical movements.
Methodology
Researchers used resting-state functional MRI to map brain connectivity in a sample of 337 newborn infants. A sub-sample of 24 healthy, full-term infants was scanned late to define 11 typical resting-state networks. The researchers then analyzed and compared these networks in 248 full-term infants and 65 preterm infants scanned between normal birth-equivalent ages.
Limitations
While the study shows clear differences in connectivity patterns, it cannot prove that preterm birth directly causes these changes, nor does it link these brain differences to actual behavioral or cognitive problems later in life. Additionally, because the brain scans were taken at a single point in time for each infant rather than tracking the same babies longitudinally, the developmental trajectories are inferred rather than observed directly. Finally, the imaging techniques used are less sensitive to deeper brain regions, meaning potential disruptions in subcortical areas like the thalamus might be missed.
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