Voxel-based MRI morphology analysis of white matter in children with anisometropic and ametropic amblyopia

Objective To investigate white matter volume changes in children with anisometropic or ametropic amblyopia.Methods A total of fourteen anisometropic amblyopic children,eight ametropic amblyopia and twenty matched normal controls participated in this study.After high resolution T1WI images of the brain were acquired,the data were processed using voxel-based morphometry (VBM).Two sample t-test were employed to analyze the morphological changes of white matter in amblyopic groups.Results Compared to healthy controls,anisometropic amblyopic group showed decreased white matter volume in left calarine sulcus and superior parietal lobule,whereas increased white matter volume was detected in right cuneus.In ametropic amblyopia group,only reduced white matter volumes were found,and the regions predominantly located in right occipital lobe and frontal lobe.Conclusions Both anisometropic and ametropic amblyopic children undergo white matter morphologic changes in vision associated regions.These findings suggest that besides gray matter,developmental abnormalities also exist in white matter,and such morphologic changes also may contribute to visual impairment in amblyopic children as well. Key words: MRI; VBM; Anisometropic amblyopia; Ametropic amblyopia; White matter