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Neuropediatrics 2023; 54(02): 139-146
DOI: 10.1055/a-1993-3985
Original Article

Cognitive and Brain Gray Matter Changes in Children with Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Voxel-Based Morphological Study

Li Hongbin    *
1   Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
2   Beijing Key Laboratory for Pediatric Diseases of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
,
Li Zhuo   *
3   Department of Otolaryngology, Beijing First Hospital of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine, Beijing, China
,
Wang Guixiang
1   Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
2   Beijing Key Laboratory for Pediatric Diseases of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
,
Zhao Jing
1   Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
2   Beijing Key Laboratory for Pediatric Diseases of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
,
Wang Hua
1   Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
2   Beijing Key Laboratory for Pediatric Diseases of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
,
Liu Yue
4   Department of Radiology, Imaging Center, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
,
Nie Binbin
5   Key Laboratory of Nuclear Radiation and Nuclear Energy Technology, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
,
Zhang Jie
1   Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
2   Beijing Key Laboratory for Pediatric Diseases of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
,
Tai Jun
6   Department of Otolaryngology, Children's Hospital, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
,
Ni Xin
1   Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
2   Beijing Key Laboratory for Pediatric Diseases of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
› Author Affiliations
Funding This work was supported by the Beijing Hospitals Authority' Ascent Plan (grant number: DFL20191201); Respiratory Research Project of National Clinical Research Center for Respiratory Diseases (grant number: HXZX-20210201).
› Further Information
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Abstract

Background To explore the neural difference between children with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and healthy controls, together with the relation between this difference and clinical severity indicator of children with OSA.

Methods Twenty-seven children with OSA (7.6 ± 2.5 years, apnea hypopnea index [AHI]: 9.7 ± 5.3 events/h) and 30 healthy controls (7.8 ± 2.6 years, AHI: 1.7 ± 1.2 events/h) were recruited and matched with age, gender, and handedness. All children underwent 3.0 T magnetic resonance imaging of the brain and cognitive testing evaluating. Volumetric segmentation of cortical and subcortical structures and voxel-based morphometry were performed. Pearson's correlation analysis was performed between these features of gray matter volume (GMV) and obstructive apnea index (OAI) among children with OSA.

Results In the comparison of children's Wechsler test scores of full-scale intelligence quotient and verbal intelligence quotient, the OSA group was significantly lower than the control group (p < 0.05). Compared with the control group, the GMV of many brain regions in the OSA group was significantly decreased (p < 0.05). In the correlation analysis of GMV and OAI in OSA group, right inferior frontal gyrus volume was significantly negatively correlated with OAI (r = − 0.49, p = 0.02).

Conclusion Children with OSA presented abnormal neural activities in some brain regions and impaired cognitive functions. This finding suggests an association between the OSA and decreased GMV in children.

Keywords

children - obstructive sleep apnea - voxel-based morphometry - magnetic resonance imaging - gray matter volume

Authors' Contribution

L.H., L.Z., and W.G. drafted and revised the manuscript; Z.J., W.H., L.Y., and N.B., performed questionnaire survey and data analysis; Z.J., T.J., and N.X. are co-corresponding authors, helped in critical revision, and approved the final manuscript. All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.


Informed Consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.


Data Availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.


* Li Hongbin and Li Zhuo have contributed equally to this work and share the first authorship.




Publication History

Received: 12 October 2022

Accepted: 01 December 2022

Accepted Manuscript online:
06 December 2022

Article published online:
18 January 2023

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