A new UC San Francisco study that mapped the neural connections of newborns with two different kinds of brain injuries found the maps looked very different – and were linked to significantly different developmental outcomes years later.
The study, published Jan. 5 in PLOS ONE and led by UCSF pediatrics, neurology and radiology researchers, used diffusion MRI to visualize the brain wiring of two sets of newborns: one set with congenital heart defects (CHD) and the other with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) – otherwise known as birth asphyxia.
HIE babies suffer brain injury and oxygen deprivation within days to hours of being born, while CHD babies are steadily deprived of oxygen for longer – often months – in utero. Both groups are known to be at high risk for neurodevelopmental disabilities as they grow older, in areas ranging from motor skills to attention to behavioral issues.
Read more at: https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2022/01/422091/timing-brain-injury-pregnancy-birth-may-impact-motor-and-language-outcomes
