Preterm infants’ early growth and brain white matter maturation at term age

Background Normal intrauterine conditions are essential to normal brain growth and development; premature birth and growth restriction can interrupt brain maturation. Maturation processes can be studied using diffusion tensor imaging. Objective The aim of this study was to use tract-based spatial statistics to assess the effect that early postnatal growth from birth to 40 gestational weeks has on brain white matter maturation. Materials and methods A total of 36 preterm infants were accepted in the study. Postnatal growth was assessed by weight, length and head circumference. Birth weight z-score and gestational age were used as confounding covariates. Results Head circumference catch-up growth was associated with less mature diffusion parameters ( P