Cortical surface area, thalamic nuclei volume, and associations with neurocognitive functioning in 6-13-year-old children born late preterm and full term

Paige M Nelson; Heidi M Harmon; Jane E Brumbaugh; Peggy C Nopoulos; Jerome J Maller; Allison M Momany; Vincent A Magnotta

doi:10.64898/2026.09.15.26362093

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Cortical surface area, thalamic nuclei volume, and associations with neurocognitive functioning in 6-13-year-old children born late preterm and full term

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Cortical surface area, thalamic nuclei volume, and associations with neurocognitive functioning in 6-13-year-old children born late preterm and full term

Paige M Nelson, Heidi M Harmon, Jane E Brumbaugh, Peggy C Nopoulos, Jerome J Maller, Allison M Momany and Vincent A Magnotta

medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

09/16/2026

DOI: 10.64898/2026.09.15.26362093

PMID: 42780114

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Preprint (Author's original) This preprint has not been evaluated by subject experts through peer review. Preprints may undergo extensive changes and/or become peer-reviewed journal articles. Open Access

Abstract

Late preterm (LP) children (34 0/7 - 36 6/7 weeks of gestation) are at risk for neurocognitive challenges, yet the neuroanatomic and functional disruptions underlying these developmental differences remain poorly understood. Investigate (1) regional differences in cortical surface area and thalamic nuclei volume and (2) structural variations that may explain heterogeneity in neurocognitive functioning in LP versus full term (FT) school-aged children, using two complementary approaches: a vertex-wise analysis of cortical surface area and a region-of-interest volumetric analysis of thalamic nuclei. Secondary analysis of a prospective observational cohort study. 48 LP and 72 FT children aged 6-13 years. 3T; Sagittal T1-weighted MP-RAGE and axial T2-weighted 3D SPACE. FreeSurfer 7.4.1 was used to parcellate cortical regions (Destrieux atlas) and segment thalamic nuclei (25 nuclei). Neurocognitive functioning was assessed across four domains: hyperactivity/inattention (Pediatric Behavior Scale), processing speed (WISC-IV), working memory (WISC-III), and visual-spatial perception (Benton JLO). Independent samples t-tests for group comparisons; vertex-wise GLMs for cortical surface analyses with false discovery rate (FDR) correction; and multiple linear regression for thalamic nuclei analyses with FDR-corrected < 0.05. Vertex-wise analyses revealed regional differences in cortical surface area between LP and FT children in both hemispheres, along with associations between surface area in several cortical regions and hyperactivity/inattention, working memory, and visual-spatial perception. In contrast, using an ROI approach, thalamic nuclei volumes did not differ between groups and were not associated with any neurocognitive domains. LP birth may be associated with subtle, region-specific bidirectional left and right hemispheric cortical surface area differences rather than widespread structural alterations in middle childhood, with regional macrostructural measures associated with individual differences in neurocognitive functioning.

structure-function

Late preterm birth

school-age

neurocognition

vertex-wise analysis

FreeSurfer

Details

Title: Subtitle: Cortical surface area, thalamic nuclei volume, and associations with neurocognitive functioning in 6-13-year-old children born late preterm and full term
Creators: Paige M Nelson - University of Iowa
Heidi M Harmon - University of Iowa
Jane E Brumbaugh - University of Iowa
Peggy C Nopoulos - University of Iowa
Jerome J Maller - University of Iowa
Allison M Momany - University of Iowa
Vincent A Magnotta - University of Iowa
Resource Type: Preprint
Publication Details: medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences
DOI: 10.64898/2026.09.15.26362093
PMID: 42780114
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory; United States
Grant note: T32 MH019113 / NIMH NIH HHS
Language: English
Date posted: 09/16/2026
Academic Unit: Roy J. Carver Department of Biomedical Engineering; Neurology; Radiology; Psychiatry; Stead Family Department of Pediatrics; Iowa Neuroscience Institute; Neonatology
Record Identifier: 9985236349802771

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