Differences in interregional brain connectivity in children with unilateral hearing loss.

OBJECTIVES: To identify functional network architecture differences in the brains of children with unilateral hearing loss (UHL) using resting-state functional-connectivity magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fcMRI).

STUDY DESIGN: Prospective observational study.

METHODS: Children (7 to 17 years of age) with severe to profound hearing loss in one ear, along with their normal hearing (NH) siblings, were recruited and imaged using rs-fcMRI. Eleven children had right UHL; nine had left UHL; and 13 had normal hearing. Forty-one brain regions of interest culled from established brain networks such as the default mode (DMN); cingulo-opercular (CON); and frontoparietal networks (FPN); as well as regions for language, phonological, and visual processing, were analyzed using regionwise correlations and conjunction analysis to determine differences in functional connectivity between the UHL and normal hearing children.

RESULTS: When compared to the NH group, children with UHL showed increased connectivity patterns between multiple networks, such as between the CON and visual processing centers. However, there were decreased, as well as aberrant connectivity patterns with the coactivation of the DMN and FPN, a relationship that usually is negatively correlated.

CONCLUSION: Children with UHL demonstrate multiple functional connectivity differences between brain networks involved with executive function, cognition, and language comprehension that may represent adaptive as well as maladaptive changes. These findings suggest that possible interventions or habilitation, beyond amplification, might be able to affect some children's requirement for additional help at school.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 3b. Laryngoscope, 127:2636-2645, 2017.