Altered Functional Connectivity in Patients with Transient Ischemic Attack by Resting-state Functional MRI

ObjectiveTo investigate longitudinal changes in functional connectivity during resting-state in patients with transient ischemic attack (TIA). Methods35 patients first suffering TIA in the right hemisphere were recruited,with 35 healthy volunteers were recruited as control. At 1 week and 3 months after TIA attack,functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans were performed,then resting-state functional connectivity was assessed and compared with that of healthy subjects. Right inferior prefrontal cortex (iPFC) and its mirror region was used as region of interest (ROI) in this analysis. ResultsCompared with controls,higher functional connectivity with the left cerebellum,right superior temporal gyrus (STG) and insula,and lower functional connectivity with the right middle frontal gyrus (MFG) was demonstrated in patients at 1 week after TIA; while decreased functional connectivity in right STG,left insula and bilateral thalamus was shown in patients at 3 month after TIA. Correlation analysis found that functional connectivity of right iPFC with the cerebellum and insula was positively correlated with 2-back reaction time at 1 week after TIA. ConclusionAlthough the nervous system signs of TIA can be quickly recovered,abnormal activation of working memory-related brain regions will occur for a long time.