Morphological abnormalities in prefrontal surface area and thalamic volume in attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder

Early childhood deprivation is associated with higher rates of neurodevelopmental and mental disorders in adulthood. The impact of childhood deprivation on the adult brain and the extent to which structural changes underpin these effects are currently unknown. To investigate these questions, we utilized MRI data collected from young adults who were exposed to severe deprivation in early childhood in the Romanian orphanages of the Ceaușescu era and then, subsequently adopted by UK families; 67 Romanian adoptees (with between 3 and 41 mo of deprivation) were compared with 21 nondeprived UK adoptees. Romanian adoptees had substantially smaller total brain volumes (TBVs) than nondeprived adoptees (8.6% reduction), and TBV was strongly negatively associated with deprivation duration. This effect persisted after covarying for potential environmental and genetic confounds. In whole-brain analyses, deprived adoptees showed lower right inferior frontal surface area and volume but greater right inferior temporal lobe thickness, surface area, and volume than the nondeprived adoptees. Right medial prefrontal volume and surface area were positively associated with deprivation duration. No deprivation-related effects were observed in limbic regions. Global reductions in TBV statistically mediated the observed relationship between institutionalization and both lower intelligence quotient (IQ) and higher levels of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms. The deprivation-related increase in right inferior temporal volume seemed to be compensatory, as it was associated with lower levels of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms. We provide compelling evidence that time-limited severe deprivation in the first years of life is related to alterations in adult brain structure, despite extended enrichment in adoptive homes in the intervening years.

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Development of Cortical Surface Area and Gyrification in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Biological Psychiatry ◽

10.1016/j.biopsych.2012.01.031 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 72 (3) ◽

pp. 191-197 ◽

Cited By ~ 184

Author(s):

Philip Shaw ◽

Meaghan Malek ◽

Bethany Watson ◽

Wendy Sharp ◽

Alan Evans ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ◽

Surface Area ◽

Attention Deficit ◽

Cortical Surface ◽

Cortical Surface Area ◽

Hyperactivity Disorder

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Subcortical brain volume, regional cortical thickness and cortical surface area across attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)

10.1101/673012 ◽

2019 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Premika S.W. Boedhoe ◽

Daan van Rooij ◽

Martine Hoogman ◽

Jos W.R. Twisk ◽

Lianne Schmaal ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ◽

Surface Area ◽

Cortical Thickness ◽

Attention Deficit ◽

Age Groups ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Obsessive Compulsive ◽

Compulsive Disorder ◽

Hyperactivity Disorder

ABSTRACTObjectiveAttention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) are common neurodevelopmental disorders that frequently co-occur. We aimed to directly compare all three disorders. The ENIGMA consortium is ideally positioned to investigate structural brain alterations across these disorders.MethodsStructural T1-weighted whole-brain MRI of controls (n=5,827) and patients with ADHD (n=2,271), ASD (n=1,777), and OCD (n=2,323) from 151 cohorts worldwide were analyzed using standardized processing protocols. We examined subcortical volume, cortical thickness and surface area differences within a mega-analytical framework, pooling measures extracted from each cohort. Analyses were performed separately for children, adolescents, and adults using linear mixed-effects models adjusting for age, sex and site (and ICV for subcortical and surface area measures).ResultsWe found no shared alterations among all three disorders, while shared alterations between any two disorders did not survive multiple comparisons correction. Children with ADHD compared to those with OCD had smaller hippocampal volumes, possibly influenced by IQ. Children and adolescents with ADHD also had smaller ICV than controls and those with OCD or ASD. Adults with ASD showed thicker frontal cortices compared to adult controls and other clinical groups. No OCD-specific alterations across different age-groups and surface area alterations among all disorders in childhood and adulthood were observed.ConclusionOur findings suggest robust but subtle alterations across different age-groups among ADHD, ASD, and OCD. ADHD-specific ICV and hippocampal alterations in children and adolescents, and ASD-specific cortical thickness alterations in the frontal cortex in adults support previous work emphasizing neurodevelopmental alterations in these disorders.

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Cortical morphometry in attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder: Contribution of thickness and surface area to volume

Cortex ◽

10.1016/j.cortex.2016.05.012 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 82 ◽

pp. 1-10 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

Timothy J. Silk ◽

Richard Beare ◽

Charles Malpas ◽

Chris Adamson ◽

Veronika Vilgis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ◽

Surface Area ◽

Attention Deficit ◽

Hyperactivity Disorder ◽

Cortical Morphometry

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Analysis of structural brain asymmetries in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder in 39 datasets

10.1101/2020.03.03.974758 ◽

2020 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Merel C. Postema ◽

Martine Hoogman ◽

David C. Glahn ◽

Neda Jahanshad ◽

Sarah E. Medland ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ◽

Surface Area ◽

Attention Deficit ◽

Multiple Testing ◽

Age Groups ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Brain Asymmetry ◽

Small Samples ◽

Hyperactivity Disorder ◽

Structural Brain

ABSTRACTObjectiveSome studies have suggested alterations of structural brain asymmetry in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but findings have been contradictory and based on small samples. Here we performed the largest-ever analysis of brain left-right asymmetry in ADHD, using 39 datasets of the ENIGMA consortium.MethodsWe analyzed asymmetry of subcortical and cerebral cortical structures in up to 1,978 people with ADHD and unaffected 1,917 controls. Asymmetry Indexes (AIs) were calculated per participant for each bilaterally paired measure, and linear mixed effects modelling was applied separately in children, adolescents, adults, and the total sample, to test exhaustively for potential associations of ADHD with structural brain asymmetries.ResultsThere was no evidence for altered caudate nucleus asymmetry in ADHD, in contrast to prior literature. In children, there was less rightward asymmetry of the total hemispheric surface area compared to controls (t=2.4, P=0.019). Lower rightward asymmetry of medial orbitofrontal cortex surface area in ADHD (t=2.4, P=0.007) was similar to a recent finding for autism spectrum disorder. There were also some differences in cortical thickness asymmetry across age groups. In adults with ADHD, globus pallidus asymmetry was altered compared to those without ADHD. However, all effects were small (Cohen’s d from −0.18 to 0.18) and would not survive study-wide correction for multiple testing.ConclusionPrior studies of altered structural brain asymmetry in ADHD were likely underpowered to detect the small effects reported here. Altered structural asymmetry is unlikely to provide a useful biomarker for ADHD, but may provide neurobiological insights into the trait.

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