Regional homogeneity (ReHo) changes in new onset versus chronic benign epilepsy of childhood with centrotemporal spikes (BECTS): A resting state fMRI study

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate regional homogeneity (ReHo) in children with new-onset drug-naive Benign Epilepsy with Centrotemporal Spikes (BECTS), chronic SECTS and healthy controls (HC) using the Regional Homogeneity (ReHo) method applied to resting state fMRI data. Methods: Resting state fMRI data was collected from three groups of children aged 6-13, including new onset drug naive BECTS, chronic BECTS with medication, and HC; the data analyzed by ReHo method. Mandarin school exams scores were acquired and compared across groups. Results: There were three main findings. Firstly, compared with HC, abnormally increased ReHo was observed in bilateral sensorimotor regions in new onset BECTS which normalized or even reversed in the chronic BECTS group. Secondly, enhanced ReHo was found in the left frontal language region in the two BECTS groups, with even higher ReHo value in the chronic group. Lastly, decreased ReHo was found in regions of the default mode network (DMN), bilateral occipital lobes and cerebellum in both the new onset and chronic BECTS groups, lower in chronic SECTS. Behavioral analyses of school scores showed the chronic BECTS group presented significantly lower scores compared to HC (p<.05). Significance: The coherence of low frequency fluctuations is disrupted in sensorimotor, language and DMN-related regions in new-onset BECTS. Some of these effects seem to be selectively normalized in chronic SECTS, thus allowing us to explore possible chronicity and AED-induced effects on SECTS. Abnormal ReHo in left language and DMN regions could be responsible for impairments of cognitive function. Published by Elsevier B.V.