Derivation of Novel Imaging Biomarkers of Neonatal Brain Injury Using Bedside Diffuse Optical Tomography: Protocol for a Prospective Feasibility Study.

Sabrina Mastroianni, Anagha Vinod, Naiqi G Xiao, Heather Johnson, Lehana Thabane, Qiyin Fang, Ipsita Goswami

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Article in NeuroSci, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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7 authors.

Sabrina MastroianniMichael G. DeGroote School of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.

Anagha VinodDepartment of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.ORCID 0009-0000-8290-1053

Naiqi G XiaoDepartment of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.

Heather JohnsonDivision of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.

Lehana ThabaneDepartment of Health Research Methods, Evidence and Impact, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.

Qiyin FangDepartment of Engineering Physics, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.ORCID 0000-0003-2786-9884

Ipsita GoswamiDivision of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada.ORCID 0000-0003-4677-6456

Funding

Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Discovery Grants RGPIN-2020-07129New Investigator Grant, Hamilton Health Sciences N22535

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Prognostication of neurodevelopmental outcomes for neonates with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) is primarily reliant on structural assessment using conventional brain magnetic resonance imaging in the clinical setting. Diffuse optical tomography (DOT) can provide complementary information on brain function at the bedside, further enhancing prognostic accuracy. The predictive accuracy and generalizability of DOT-based neuroimaging markers are unknown. This study aims to test the feasibility of prospectively recruiting and retaining neonates for 12 months in a larger study that investigates the prognostic utility of DOT-based biomarkers of HIE. The study will recruit 25 neonates with HIE over one year and follow them beyond NICU discharge at 6 and 12 months of age. Study subjects will undergo resting-state DOT measurement within 7 days of life for a 30-45-min period without sedation. A customized neonatal cap with 10 sources and eight detectors per side will be used to quantify cortical functional connectivity and to generate brain networks using MATLAB-based software (version 24.2). The Ages and Stages Questionnaires-3rd edition will be used for standardized developmental assessments at follow-up. This feasibility study will help refine the design and sample-size calculation for an adequately powered larger study that determines the clinical utility of DOT-based neuroimaging in perinatal brain injury.

Indexed as

diffuse optical tomographyfeasibility studiesfunctional near-infrared spectroscopyhypoxic–ischemic encephalopathyneonatal brain injury

Identifiers

PMID40700125

DOI10.3390/neurosci6030060

PMCPMC12286108

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LicenceCC BY

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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.