Table 1.
Demographic Characteristics.
Figure 1.
Whole-brain white matter skeleton diffusion properties plotted against age.
ASD = Autism Spectrum Disorder; FA = fractional anisotropy; MD = mean diffusivity. Pearson correlations for DTI indices and age are presented.
Figure 2.
Voxel and tract-based increases in white matter diffusivity in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD).
(2A.) Results of voxel based comparisons depicting white matter clusters featuring increased mean and radial diffusivity in children with ASD. Left: White matter clusters featuring increased mean diffusivity (MD) in ASD are presented in blue. Right: White matter clusters featuring increased radial diffusivity in ASD are presented in red. Rows: (I) left (Lt) and right (Rt) Superior Corona Radiata (CR); (II) Lt and Rt Uncinate Fasciculus (UF); and (III) Rt Inferior Longitudinal Fasciculus (ILF). Note, no difference in MD (image III, left column) was found for Rt ILF in ASD, on TBSS analysis. (2B.) Boxplots depicting MD values for tract-based comparisons corresponding to white matter clusters depicted in 2A. Results for ASD and control (CON) children (Child) and adolescents (Adlsnt) are presented. Significant increases for MD in ASD children were found in Lt and Rt CR (t1,19 = 3.1, 3.6, p = .006, 002, respectively), Lt and Rt UF (t1,19 = 3.1, 3.1, p = .006,.006, respectively), and Rt ILF (t1,19 = 3.3, p = .004). Diffusivity units: mm2/s×10−3. *Significant following multiple comparison correction.
Figure 3.
Skeletonized tract-specific regions of interest.
Abbreviations: CR: superior corona radiata; SLF: superior longitudinal fasciculus; F.Minor CC: forceps minor corpus collosum; F.Major CC: forceps major corpus collosum; UF: uncinate fasciculus; IFOF: inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus; Rt. ILF: right inferior longitudinal fasciculus.