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Neuropediatrics 2000; 31(2): 63-69
DOI: 10.1055/s-2000-7475
Original Article

Georg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart · New York

Reorganization of the Hand Somatosensory Cortex Following Perinatal Unilateral Brain Injury

D. Chu1 , P. R. Huttenlocher2,3 , D. N. Levin4 , V. L. Towle2,5
  • 1 Fonar Corporation New York, USA
  • 2 Department of Neurology, University of Chicago, USA
  • 3 Department of Pediatrics, University of Chicago, USA
  • 4 Department of Radiology, University of Chicago, USA
  • 5 Department of Surgery, University of Chicago, USA
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Publication History

Publication Date:
31 December 2000 (online)

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Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to map the hand somatosensory cortices of nine hemiparetic young adult patients with perinatal unilateral brain injury in the sensorimotor area and five normal subjects. Stimulation of the paretic hand by periodic manual squeezing produced activation in the contralateral hemisphere of three patients and in the ipsilateral hemisphere of three other patients. Paretic hand stimulation produced no activation in either hemisphere of the remaining three patients. Therefore, one-third of the patients demonstrated functional “plasticity” of the brain in the form of inter-hemispheric relocation of the hand somatosensory function. The volume and pattern of activation for both hands was altered for those patients that showed evidence of cortical reorganization to the opposite hemisphere. This differs from the hand motor system, which exhibited inter-hemispheric reorganization in a higher proportion of a related group of hemiparetic subjects.

Key words

Brain plasticity - Perinatal brain injury - Somatosensory cortex - Functional magnetic resonance imaging - FMRI, BOLD - Functional reorganization

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Ph. D. Vernon L. Towle

Department of Neurology, MC-2030 University of Chicago Hospitals

5841 S Maryland Ave

Chicago, IL 60637

USA

Email: E-mail: v-towle@uchicago.edu