Children with new-onset epilepsy exhibit diffusion abnormalities in cerebral white matter in the absence of volumetric differences

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the diffusion properties of cerebral white matter in children with recent onset epilepsy (n = 19) compared to healthy controls (n = 11). Subjects underwent DTI with quantification of mean diffusion (MD), fractional anisotropy (FA), axial diffusivity (D_ax) and radial diffusivity (D_rad) for regions of interest including anterior and posterior corpus callosum, fornix, cingulum, and internal and external capsules. Quantitative volumetrics were also performed for the corpus callosum and its subregions (anterior, midbody and posterior) and total lobar white and gray matter for the frontal, parietal, temporal and occipital lobes. The results demonstrated no group differences in total lobar gray or white matter volumes or volume of the corpus callosum and its subregions, but did show reduced FA and increased D_rad in the posterior corpus callosum and cingulum. These results provide the earliest indication of microstructural abnormality in cerebral white matter among children with idiopathic epilepsies. This abnormality occurs in the context of normal volumetrics and suggests disruption in myelination processes.