ArticleEuropean journal of pediatrics2025
White matter correlates of language ability in chinese boys with autism spectrum disorder: a diffusional kurtosis imaging study.
Article in European journal of pediatrics, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) exhibit diverse language abilities, yet magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies have not systematically examined white matter microstructural differences based on language difficulties. This study aimed to use diffusional kurtosis imaging (DKI) and tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS) to investigate white matter variations in boys with ASD and explore their relationship with language abilities. The study included 61 boys with ASD and 30 typically developing (TD) peers. The ASD group was divided into mild (n = 28) and severe (n = 33) language difficulties subgroups based on the Griffiths Development Scales-Chinese Edition (GDS-C) scores. DKI data were collected for all participants, while clinical symptoms were assessed in the ASD group using the GDS-C and Autism Behavior Checklist (ABC) scales. Correlation analyses examined the relationship between diffusion metrics and clinical scale scores in ASD. Compared to TD peers, children with ASD exhibited significantly reduced white matter microstructural integrity in the corpus callosum (CC), fornix, bilateral corona radiata (CR), inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF), inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus (IFOF), and superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF), with more pronounced reductions in the severe language difficulties subgroup. Additionally, in the mild language difficulties subgroup, mean kurtosis (MK) in the left CR was positively associated with GDS-C language subscale scores. In the severe language difficulties subgroup, MK in the right IFOF showed a positive association with GDS-C language subscale scores, while kurtosis fractional anisotropy (KFA) in the CC was negatively associated with ABC language subscale scores.
conclusionThese findings suggest that reduced white matter microstructural integrity in these tracts may be an important neurobiological factor associated with language difficulties in boys with ASD. Additionally, boys with severe language difficulties may exhibit more distinct and widespread white matter differences compared to those with mild difficulties. WHAT IS KNOWN: • Children with ASD often present with varying degrees of language difficulties; language delay is an early and sensitive indicator of ASD. • Previous DTI studies have identified white matter abnormalities in ASD, particularly in tracts related to language processing. WHAT IS NEW: • DKI analyses revealed graded white matter alterations in ASD children based on the severity of language difficulties. • Microstructural changes in specific language-related white matter tracts were significantly associated with language abilities.
Indexed as
Identifiers
40658215What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.