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Hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattention in boys with cleft lip and palate: relationship to ventromedial prefrontal cortex morphology
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattention in boys with cleft lip and palate: relationship to ventromedial prefrontal cortex morphology

Peggy Nopoulos, Aaron D Boes, Althea Jabines, Amy L Conrad, John Canady, Lynn Richman and Jeffrey D Dawson
Journal of neurodevelopmental disorders, Vol.2(4), pp.235-242
12/2010
DOI: 10.1007/s11689-010-9060-5
PMCID: PMC3164053
PMID: 22127933
url
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11689-010-9060-5View
Published (Version of record) Open Access

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to evaluate quantitative structural measures of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) in boys with isolated clefts of the lip and/or palate (ICLP) relative to a comparison group and to associate measures of brain structure with quantitative measures of hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattentiveness. A total of 50 boys with ICLP were compared to 60 healthy boys without clefts. Magnetic resonance imaging brain scans were used to evaluate vmPFC structure. Parents and teachers provided quantitative measures of hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattentiveness using the Pediatric Behavior Scale. Boys with ICLP had significantly higher ratings of hyperactivity/impulsivity/inattention (HII) and significantly increased volume of the right vmPFC relative to the comparison group. There was a direct relationship between HII score and vmPFC volume in both the ICLP group and control group, but the relationship was in the opposite direction: in ICLP, the higher the vmPFC volume, the higher the HII score; for the comparison group, the lower the vmPFC volume, the greater the HII score. The vmPFC is a region of the brain that governs behaviors of hyperactivity, impulsivity and inattention (HII). In boys with ICLP, there are higher levels of HII compared to the controls and this is directly related to a significantly enlarged volume of the right vmPFC. Enlargement of this region of the brain is therefore considered to be pathological in the ICLP group and supports the notion that abnormal brain structure (from abnormal brain development) is the underlying etiology for the abnormal behaviors seen in this population.
Impulsivity Ventromedial Hyperactivity Brain structure Orofacial cleft

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