Differences in Metabolite Concentrations Between the Hemispheres of the Brain in Healthy Children

What is it about?

The aim of this 1HMRS study was to identify hemispheric asymmetries in metabolic spectrum between healthy children. The study group consisted of children of both sexes aged 6 to 15. Concentrations of metabolites (NAA, Cr, Cho, mI, Lip and Lac) occurring in the brain were determined for 6 locations: hippocampus, frontal lobe and basal ganglia in left and right hemispheres. Relative concentrations were calculated in relation to the sum of all concentrations and to Cr concentration. There were no differences in the metabolites concentrations between the hemispheres of the brain in children, when the variable of sex was disregarded. Only in the group of boys the findings showed that in the right hemisphere there were higher concentrations of Cho in the frontal lobe and Cr in the basal ganglia. In the group of girls in the left hemisphere there was a higher concentration of NAA relative to the sum of all metabolite concentrations. Conclusion: In clinical practice, the results analysis of standard 1HMRS examinations in children does not need to take into account interhemispheric differences when a comparison is made between the spectrum of the lesions and the spectrum of normal tissues located symmetrically in the other hemisphere.

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Why is it important?

It is already known that in adult brain hemispheric differences exist as well as that brain metabolism changes with age. However, most studies in asymmetry between the brain hemispheres, carried out so far, have focused on adults. To our knowledge there is lack of reports on such discrepancies in children. Thus, our results can be helpful while estimating possible child brain pathology using this technique.