Brain Activity Within Prefrontal Cortex: A Resting-State fNIRS Comparative Study in High-Functioning Autism Preschoolers and Typically Developed Peers.

We applied functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) technology to detect brain function within the prefrontal cortex in 23 typically developing (TD) preschool children and 48 children with high-functioning autism (HFA), aiming to observe the differences in brain function within the prefrontal cortex between the two groups. We found that the activation degree of channels 6-7-11 corresponding to the activation area of the right prefrontal lobe in the HFA group, is significantly higher than that in the Typical Development TD group. Moreover, the number and intensity of brain functional connectivity in the HFA group are significantly lower than those in the TD group. The active areas of the brain network in the HFA group are not as concentrated as those in the TD group. This demonstrates that fNIRS detection can serve as a potential biomarker for brain activity within the prefrontal cortex of preschool children with HFA.