Multimodal MRI Investigation of Brain Structural and Functional Changes in Acute Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

Motivation: Incidence of traumatic brain injury (TBI) are rising over years. Goal(s): Accurately and objectively evaluate the degree of brain injury and judge the prognosis of patients with mTBI. Approach: Neuropsychological assessment results, brain volume from morphological MR data, and brain functional connectivity from fMRI data were compared between 48 acute mTBI patients and 30 healthy controls. Results: Acute mTBI patients exhibit reduced volume in the right frontal lobe compared to the healthy control group, which is associated with cognitive decline. Impact: The morphological changes in the right frontal lobe observed in this study may serve as a potential biomarker for acute mTBI, offering a more objective measure for the diagnosis and treatment of brain injury in acute mTBI patients.