Alternations of interhemispheric functional connectivity in patients with optic neuritis using voxel-mirrored homotopic connectivity: A resting state fMRI study.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: We used the voxel-mirrored homotopic connectivity (VMHC) method to investigate brain interhemispheric functional connectivity changes in patients with optic neuritis (ON).

METHODS

A total of 22 ON patients and 22 healthy controls (HCs) closely matched in age, sex, and weight were enrolled. All participants underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI). Functional interaction between the hemispheres was assessed with the VMHC method. Correlation analysis was applied to explore the association between altered VMHC values in different brain areas and cognitive features. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was applied to distinguish ON patients from HCs.

RESULTS

Compared with HCs, ON patients had obviously reduced VMHC values in the right superior temporal gyrus, left margin superior gyrus, right superior motor cortex, and left middle cingulate gyrus. a negative relationship between best-corrected visual acuity and VMHC values in left margin superior gyrus was found, besides, the VMHC values within the right superior motor cortex and the right superior temporal gyrus were also anti-correlated with the Hamilton Depression Scales. The ROC curve displayed high diagnostic values in those altered regions.

CONCLUSION

Abnormal VMHC values may reflect the underlying neuropathologic mechanism of ON.