Studying cognition impairment in patients with minimal hepatic encephalopathy through functional connectivity analysis: evidence from resting-state functional MRI

IF 2.1 3区医学 Q2 RADIOLOGY, NUCLEAR MEDICINE & MEDICAL IMAGING

Clinical radiology Pub Date : 2025-04-02 DOI:10.1016/j.crad.2025.106922

X. Yang , W. Liu , W. Ma , M. Wang , J. Zheng , X. Ding , X. Wang

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Aim

This study aimed to investigate functional connectivity (FC) alterations between the insula and other brain regions in minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) patients and their association with cognitive deficits.

Materials and Methods

The study included 23 MHE patients and 25 healthy control (HC) individuals. All participants underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonanceimaging (fMRI), neuropsychological testing, and cognitive scale assessments. FC analysis was performed to investigate the connectivity between the insula and the whole brain in the context of MHE. Pearson correlation analysis was conducted to assess the association between changes in FC and cognitive scale scores.

Results

The HC and MHE groups showed significant differences in cognitive performance measures, such as the Number Connection Test-A (NCT-A), Digit symbol Test (DST), and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score (P < 0.01). The MHE group demonstrated elevated FC between the right insula and the right superior frontal gyrus, right middle frontal gyrus, and right precentral gyrus compared with the HC group. Furthermore, the left insula showed increased FC with the left middle frontal gyrus and the right middle frontal gyrus (P < 0.05, corrected). Notably, these changes in FC among MHE patients were significantly correlated with the MoCA score (P < 0.05, corrected).

Conclusion

This study emphasises the FC alterations between the insula and the prefrontal cortex in MHE patients, which have a close association with cognitive functions. FC could potentially serve as a biomarker for diagnosing and assessing the severity of cognitive impairments in MHE.

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通过功能连通性分析研究轻度肝性脑病患者的认知障碍：静息状态功能MRI的证据。

目的：本研究旨在探讨轻度肝性脑病（MHE）患者脑岛和其他脑区之间功能连接（FC）的改变及其与认知缺陷的关系。材料与方法：本研究纳入23例MHE患者和25例健康对照（HC）。所有参与者都接受了静息状态功能磁共振成像（fMRI）、神经心理测试和认知量表评估。在MHE背景下，进行FC分析以研究脑岛和整个大脑之间的连通性。采用Pearson相关分析评估FC变化与认知量表得分之间的关系。结果：HC组和MHE组在数字连接测试（NCT-A）、数字符号测试（DST）和蒙特利尔认知评估（MoCA）得分等认知表现指标上存在显著差异（P < 0.01）。与HC组相比，MHE组右脑岛与右额上回、右额中回和右中央前回之间的FC升高。此外，左脑岛与左额中回和右额中回的FC增加（P < 0.05，校正后）。值得注意的是，MHE患者FC的这些变化与MoCA评分显著相关（P < 0.05，经校正）。结论：本研究强调MHE患者脑岛和前额叶皮层之间的FC改变与认知功能密切相关。FC有可能作为诊断和评估MHE患者认知障碍严重程度的生物标志物。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Clinical radiology 医学-核医学

CiteScore

4.70

自引率

3.80%

发文量

528

审稿时长

76 days

期刊介绍： Clinical Radiology is published by Elsevier on behalf of The Royal College of Radiologists. Clinical Radiology is an International Journal bringing you original research, editorials and review articles on all aspects of diagnostic imaging, including: • Computed tomography • Magnetic resonance imaging • Ultrasonography • Digital radiology • Interventional radiology • Radiography • Nuclear medicine Papers on radiological protection, quality assurance, audit in radiology and matters relating to radiological training and education are also included. In addition, each issue contains correspondence, book reviews and notices of forthcoming events.