Longitudinal Changes in BOLD Variability and Functional Connectivity from Newborn to School-Age in Very Preterm Children

Motivation: BOLD-variability predicts cognitive performance (Protzner et al. 2013, Garret et al. 2011), thus may be relevant for studying high-risk populations like preterm infants. Goal(s): This study assesses how RS-fMRI regional BOLD-variability changes from newborn to school-age both longitudinally and cross-sectionally in preterm children compared with full-term controls. Approach: MRI was acquired in 55 very preterm and 27 full-term infants at term-equivalent age, and 14 very preterm and 20 full-term school-age children, of which 11 very preterm and 9 full-term children had longitudinal MRI. Results: Significant increases in BOLD-variability were observed in attention and default mode networks in preterm children, linked to cognitive performance. Impact: Compared to full-term (FT) infants, BOLD-variability is decreased in very preterm (VPT) infants at term-equivalent-age (TEA). It increases from TEA until school-age in VPT children, but not in FT peers. Overall BOLD-variability at school age links to cognitive performance.