Evaluation of cortical thickness and brain volume on 3 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging in children with frontal lobe epilepsy

Background Frontal lobe epilepsy (FLE) is the most common epilepsy syndrome in the pediatric population; however, brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the children with FLE is frequently normal. We use both cortical thickness and brain volume measurements to report on cortical changes in children with FLE. Our aim was to determine cortical thickness and brain volume changes on 3 Tesla MRI of children with FLE and normal brain magnetic resonance imaging. Methods Twenty-seven children with FLE and 27 healthy controls received brain magnetic resonance imaging. Cortical thickness and regional brain volumes were assessed using three-dimensional volumetric T1-weighted imaging and patients were compared with controls. Results In children with FLE, statistically significant (p < 0.05) cortical thinning were found in the bilateral middle frontal gyrus, bilateral occipitotemporal and medial lingual gyrus, left subcallosal gyrus, left short insular gyrus, and right long insular gyrus. Statistically significant volume reductions in right and left hemisphere cortical white matter, total cortical white matter, bilateral thalamus, bilateral putamen, bilateral globus pallidus, right caudate nucleus, brain stem, and right cerebellar cortex were found. Conclusion Cortical thinning in frontal and extra-frontal lobes and volume loss in a variety of brain regions were found in children with FLE.