Brain white matter alterations in young adult male patients with childhood-onset growth hormone deficiency: a diffusion tensor imaging study

Purpose This study aimed to detect white matter changes and different effects of thyroid hormone on the white matter integrity in young adult male patients with childhood-onset growth hormone deficiency (CO-GHD), compared with healthy people. Methods Magnetic resonance imaging (structural imaging and diffusion tensor imaging) was performed in 17 young adult male patients with CO-GHD and 17 healthy male controls. The white matter volume, mean diffusivity (MD) values and fractional anisotropy (FA) values were quantified and compared between two groups (CO-GHD group vs. control group). We assessed the interaction effects between thyroid hormone and groups (CO-GHD group vs. control group) on white matter integrity. Results Patients with CO-GHD exhibited similar white matter volumes compared with controls. However, compared with the controls, patients with CO-GHD showed a significant reduction in FA values in six clusters and a substantial increase in MD values in four clusters, mainly involving the corticospinal tracts, corpus callosum and so on. Moreover, after correcting for insulin-like growth factor-1 levels, the significant interaction effects between groups (CO-GHD group vs. control group) and serum free thyroxine levels on MD values were noted in three clusters, mainly involving in superior longitudinal fasciculus and sagittal stratum. Conclusion In conclusion, young males with CO-GHD showed white matter changes in multiple brain regions and different effects of thyroid hormone on the white matter integrity.