David Price1, Giles Simon Kendall2,
Alan Bainbridge1, Samantha Johnson2, Cornelia Hagmann2,
Roxanna Gunny3, Xavier Golay4, Ernest B. Cady1,
Nicola Jane Robertson2, Enrico De Vita5
1Medical Physics & Bio-Engineering,
UCL Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom; 2Academic
Neonatology, EGA UCL Institute for Women's Health, London, United Kingdom; 3Neuroradiology,
Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children; 4Institute of Neurology,
University College London; 5Lysholm Department of Neuroradiology,
UCL Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom
Infants
born prematurely have a higher incidence of neurodevelopmental disorders.
Diffuse white matter injury is the commonest MR finding in preterm infants,
and has been described qualitatively and quantitatively; the clinical
correlate of diffuse white matter injury is currently unknown. In the current study raised Cho/Cr and
Lac/Cr, and reduced Naa/Cho were significantly associated with composite
motor outcome at 12 months corrected age, and accounted for by significant
associations with gross motor development. The raised choline could be
attributed to delayed myelination, astrogliosis; the raised Lac/Cr suggests
impaired oxidative phosphorylation, and the reduced Naa is in keeping with
neuronal loss.