Neonatal white matter microstructure and socio-emotional development during the pre-school years in very preterm children

• In Event: Poster Session 06
  In Poster Session: PS 06 Topic - Biological Processes: Neuroscience and Genetics

Abstract

Background & Objectives
Children born very preterm (<32 weeks’ gestation) are more likely to experience deficits in socio-emotional processing compared to children born at term. In addition to having a direct impact on social development and learning abilities, such problems increase very preterm children’s risk of developing psychopathology later in life. Therefore, it is a public health priority to increase our understanding of the origins of psychopathology in these children by elucidating their developmental neurobiological mechanisms.
In this longitudinal study, we tested the hypothesis that the microstructure of white matter tracts that have been implicated in socio-emotional processing at term-equivalent age would be associated with socio-emotional development in childhood.

Methods
We studied 151 children (median GA = 30.29, 95% CI = 29.97-30.61 weeks), who underwent diffusion magnetic resonance (MR) imaging at term-equivalent age (mean = 42.22,  SD = 0.79 weeks). Diffusion data were analyzed using Tract-Specific Analysis. Fractional anisotropy (FA), a measure of white matter microstructural characteristics, was extracted from four socio-emotional related white matter tracts: uncinate fasciculus (UF), inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus (IFOF), inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF) and superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF). Childhood follow-up (median age = 4.63, 95 % CI = 4.58-4.72) included the following parental questionnaires: Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), Early Childhood Behavior Questionnaire (ECBQ), the Empathy Questionnaire (EmQue), Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS-2), and an emotion recognition task developed in-house.
Exploratory factor analysis was conducted on the following outcome variables: 4 SDQ subscales (emotional symptoms, conduct problems, peer relationship problems and prosocial behaviour), 3 ECBQ subscales (negative affectivity, surgency and effortful control), 3 EmQue subscales (emotion contagion, attention to others feelings and prosocial actions), one SRS-2 subscale (social communication index) and emotion recognition task scores. Linear regression models were used to assess the relationship between FA at term-equivalent age and childhood socio-emotional composite factor scores, using post-menstrual age at scan, sex, an index of neonatal sickness, age at assessment, child’s IQ and socio-economic status as confounders. Results were corrected for multiple testing using the Bonferroni method.

Results
Childhood socio-emotional outcomes showed a 3-factor structure, with latent constructs summarised as: 1) ‘social function’; 2) ‘emotion regulation’; 3) ‘empathy’. FA in the right UF was negatively associated with ‘emotion regulation’ (ß = -0.285, p < 0.01), while the micro-structural properties of socio-emotional related white matter tracts was not associated with ‘social function’ or ‘empathy’.

Conclusions
Microstructural alterations of the uncinate fasciculus assessed at term-equivalent age could represent an underlying biological mechanism linking very preterm birth to later problems in emotional development. Identifying those children at risk of emotional dysregulation could inform early interventions aimed at improving children’s emotional wellbeing.

Authors

• Dana Kanel, National Institute of Mental Health; University of Maryland, College Park
  Presenting Author

• Lucy Denise Vanes, King's College London
  Non-Presenting Author

• Diliana Pecheva
  Non-Presenting Author

• Shona Falconer, King's College London
  Non-Presenting Author

• David Edwards, King's College London
  Non-Presenting Author

• Serena Counsell, King's College London
  Non-Presenting Author

• Chiara Nosarti, King's College London
  Non-Presenting Author