Measuring functional connectivity in patients with strabismus using stationary functional magnetic resonance imaging: a resting-state network study.

BACKGROUND: Strabismus (STR) is a common eye disease characterized by abnormal eye movements and stereo vision. Neuroimaging studies have revealed that STR patients have impaired functional connectivity (FC) in the visual cortex and sensorimotor cortex. PURPOSE: To investigate alterations in FC and connections within and between subnetworks of the visual network (VN), sensorimotor network (SMN), and default mode network (DMN) in patients with STR. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 32 patients with STR (24 men, 8 women) and 32 age- and sex-matched healthy controls (HCs) (24 men, 8 women) were recruited. Participants underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging scans. The resting-state network (RSN) was examined by independent component analysis, and differences in RSN FC between STR and HC groups were evaluated with the t test. Functional network connectivity (FNC) analysis was performed for the three RSNs. RESULTS: Compared to the HC group, the STR group showed increased FC in the VN and SMN (voxel-level P < 0.01; two-tailed Gaussian random field correction; cluster-level P < 0.05). There were no significant alterations in DMN FC between the two groups. FNC analysis of connections in the RSN revealed that one of the three connections in the VN was reduced, but no connectivity changes were observed in the SMN or DMN. FNC analysis of the connection between two RSNs showed that two had increased and one had a decreased connection value. CONCLUSION: The VN, SMN, and DMN are reorganized in patients with STR compared to HCs, providing novel insight into the neural substrates of STR.

Investigation of changes in activity and function in acute unilateral open globe injury-associated brain regions based on percent amplitude of fluctuation method: a resting-state functional MRI study.

BACKGROUND: Open globe injury (OGI) is a serious condition that can lead to visual impairment and lifelong sequelae, brain activity of some brain regions would change in patients with OGI. PURPOSE: To evaluate changes in brain activity associated with unilateral OGI by resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) and analysis of percentage amplitude of fluctuation (PerAF). MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 22 patients with OGI (12 men, 10 women) and 22 healthy controls (HCs) matched for sex, age, and body weight were enrolled. All patients underwent rs-fMRI scans. Brain activity in the relevant brain regions was assessed with the PerAF method. The ability of PerAF to distinguish patients with OGI from HCs was assessed by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. We also examined the relationship between Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) scores and PerAF signals by Pearson's correlation analysis. RESULTS: PerAF values in amygdala_R and Frontal_Inf_Orb_L/Frontal_Inf_Oper_L were increased whereas that in Cerebellum Anterior Lobe/Cerebelum_8_L was decreased in patients with OGI compared to HCs. The areas under the ROC curve showed that these brain regions could distinguish between patients with OGI and HCs. The PerAF value of amygdala_R was positively correlated with HADS scores. CONCLUSION: Changes in PerAF in the amygdala_R, Frontal_inferior_Orb_L/Frontal_Inf_Oper_L, and Cerebellum Anterior Lobe/Cerebelum_8_L in patients with OGI may be related to an increased risk of developing psychiatric disorders such as anxiety and depression. PerAF can be used to investigate the neural basis of complications associated with OGI and monitor disease progression.

Abnormal fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations in MOG-lgG optic neuritis patients: a resting-state functional MRI study.

Optic neuritis (ON) is a general term for inflammation of any part of the optic nerve resulting from demyelination or infection. The number of patients with MOG-lgG antibody-related optic neuritis is increasing recently. Our study uses the fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (fALFF) method to compare the activity of specific brain regions in MOG-lgG ON patients and healthy controls (HCs). We selected a total of 21 MOG-lgG ON patients and 21 HCs were included in the study. All subjects underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI). The independent-samples t-test was used to compare demographic data and average fALFF values between groups. The specificity and sensitivity of fALFF values for distinguishing between MOG-lgG ON patients and HCs were evaluated by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Pearson's correlation analysis was used to analyze the relationship between fALFF values and clinical characteristics in MOG-lgG ON patients. Our results showed that fALFF values of the right cerebellum and left middle cingulum were lower whereas those of bilateral inferior temporal lobes, right gyrus rectus, and the left superior and right middle frontal lobes of MOG-lgG ON patients were higher than those of HCs (P < 0.05). The average fALFF value of the left superior frontal lobe in MOG-lgG ON patients was positively correlated with Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale score (HADS) (r = 0.6004; P < 0.05) and duration of MOG-lgG ON (r = 6487; P < 0.05). Thus, patients with MOG-lgG ON have abnormal activity in the brain regions related to vision. Changes in fALFF value can reflect functional sequelae of MOG-lgG ON, including abnormal anxiety or depressive emotional changes.

Altered functional connectivity of primary visual cortex in adults with strabismus and amblyopia: a resting-state fMRI study.

Functional connectivity of the primary visual cortex was explored with resting functional magnetic resonance imaging among adults with strabismus and amblyopia and healthy controls. We used the two-sample test and receiver operating characteristic curves to investigate the differences in mean functional connectivity values between the groups with strabismus and amblyopia and healthy controls. Compared with healthy controls, functional connectivity values in the left Brodmann areas 17, including bilateral lingual/angular gyri, were reduced in groups with strabismus and amblyopia. Moreover, functional connectivity values in the right Brodmann area 17, including left cuneus, right inferior occipital gyrus, and left inferior parietal lobule, were reduced in adults with strabismus and amblyopia. Our findings indicate that functional connectivity abnormalities exist between the primary visual cortex and other regions. This may be the basis of the pathological mechanism of visual dysfunction and stereovision disorders in adults with strabismus and amblyopia.

Altered spontaneous brain activity patterns in dysthyroid optic neuropathy: a resting-state fMRI study.

This research investigates the characteristics of spontaneous brain activity in dysthyroid optic neuropathy patients using the regional homogeneity technique. Sixteen patients with dysthyroid optic neuropathy and 16 thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy patients without dysthyroid optic neuropathy were recruited, matched for weight, height, age, sex, and educational level. All participants underwent resting-state functional nuclear resonance imaging, and the characteristics of spontaneous brain activity were evaluated using the regional homogeneity technique. Each participant in the dysthyroid optic neuropathy group also completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale. Receiver operating characteristic curves were used to compare brain activity between the two groups. Pearson correlation analysis evaluated the relationship between regional homogeneity and clinical manifestations in dysthyroid optic neuropathy patients. In addition, we analyzed the correlation between Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale and regional homogeneity. We found that the regional homogeneity values at the corpus callosum/cingulate gyrus and parietal lobe/middle frontal gyrus significantly decreased in dysthyroid optic neuropathy patients. Regional homogeneity values at the corpus callosum/cingulate gyrus and parietal lobe/middle frontal gyrus were negatively correlated with Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale and disease duration. It was found that the regional homogeneity signal values were significantly lower than in thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy without in dysthyroid optic neuropathy, which may indicate a risk of regional brain dysfunction in dysthyroid optic neuropathy. The results show that regional homogeneity has the potential for early diagnosis and prevent dysthyroid optic neuropathy. In addition, the findings suggest possible mechanisms of dysthyroid optic neuropathy optic nerve injury. They may provide a valuable basis for further research on the pathological mechanisms of dysthyroid optic neuropathy.

Voxel-based morphometry reveals altered gray matter volume related to cognitive dysfunctioning in neovascular glaucoma patients.

We used correlation analysis to examine whether changes in grey matter volume in patients correlated with clinical presentation. gray matter volume was markedly reduced in neovascular glaucoma patients than healthy controls in the following brain regions: left cingulum anterior/medial frontal gyrus; left middle frontal gyrus, orbital part; left inferior frontal gyrus, orbital part; superior temporal gyrus/right frontal inferior orbital part. VBM directly suggests that neovascular glaucoma patients have changed in the volume of multiple brain regions. These changes exist in brain areas related to the visual pathway, as well as other brain areas which are not related to vision. The alteration of specific brain areas are closely related to clinical symptoms such as increased intraocular pressure and optic nerve atrophy in neovascular glaucoma patients. In conclusion, neovascular glaucoma may cause paralgesia, anxiety, and depression in patients.

The abnormal fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation changes in patients with diabetic optic neuropathy: a steady-state fMRI study.

The spontaneous changes in brain activity in patients with diabetic optic neuropathy using steady-state fMRI. The fractional amplitude of the low-frequency fluctuation method was applied to evaluate neural activity changes. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale was used to assess the anxiety and depression status of participants. The independent sample t-test and chi-squared test were applied to analyze the demographics of diabetic optic neuropathy patients and healthy controls. Receiver operating characteristic curves were applied to analyze the variation in mean fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation values between diabetic optic neuropathy patients and healthy controls. Pearson's correlation analysis analyzed the relationships between the fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation values of brain regions and clinical behaviors in the diabetic optic neuropathy group. The fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation value of diabetic optic neuropathy patients was significantly higher than healthy controls in the right precentral gyrus. However, the fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation values in the right anterior cingulate gyrus and left middle cingulate gyrus were markedly decreased in diabetic optic neuropathy patients. The area under the curve of receiver operating characteristics for each brain region showed high accuracy. Pearson's correlation analysis showed that fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation values of the right anterior cingulate gyrus and left middle cingulate gyrus was negatively correlated with Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale scores. The fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation values of the left middle cingulate gyrus was negatively correlated with diabetic optic neuropathy disease duration. In conclusion, we found abnormal spontaneous brain activities in regions related to cognitive and emotional dysfunction, eye movement disorder, and vision loss in patients with diabetic optic neuropathy. These results may indicate the underlying neuropathological mechanisms of diabetic optic neuropathy and show that fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation may be an effective method to distinguish patients with diabetic optic neuropathy from healthy individuals.

Investigation of Altered Spontaneous Brain Activity Patterns in Herpes Zoster Keratitis Using the Percent Amplitude of Fluctuation Method: A Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to use the percent amplitude of fluctuation (PerAF) to study the changes in brain activity and nerve function of herpes zoster keratitis (HZK) patients. Methods: We recruited 20 HZK patients and 20 healthy controls (HCs). Each of these groups included ten males and ten females and were matched in weight and age. All participants underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI). The percent amplitude of fluctuation (PerAF) method was used for analysis and detected differences between the two groups in the neurological function of brain areas. We also applied the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve to analyze the two groups and did a correlation analysis between the PerAF value, anxiety and depression score, and visual acuity. Results: The PerAF signal at the right putamen and right precentral gyrus was significantly higher in patients than in HCs. However, the PerAF value of the left inferior temporal was lower in patients than in HCs. In addition, the HZK patients' anxiety and depression score (HADS) and visual acuity (V.A.) Log MAR negatively correlated with the PerAF value at the left inferior temporal gyrus. Conclusion: HZK patients had some changes in brain regions, and the changes were also related to their mood and visual acuity. These findings might contribute to other studies on the potential pathological mechanism, disease development, prognosis, and brain function in HZK patients.

Ocular microvascular alteration in Sjögren's syndrome treated with hydroxychloroquine: an OCTA clinical study.

Background: Sjögren's syndrome (SjS) is a rare autoimmune disease, and despite our knowledge of SjS, we still lack effective treatments. Chloroquine drugs used to treat autoimmune diseases are still the primary medicine for SjS but increase the risk of chloroquine retinopathy. Objectives: The objective of this study is to use Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography (OCTA) images to monitor the microvascular changes in the fundus of SjS patients after hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) treatment and the feasibility of using them as diagnostic indicators. Design: This is a retrospective observational cohort study. Methods: Twelve healthy controls (HCs group; 24 eyes), 12 SjS patients (SjS group; 24 eyes), and 12 SjS patients treated with HCQ (HCQ group; 24 eyes) were recruited. Three-dimensional OCTA images of the retina were collected, and microvascular density was calculated for each eye. OCTA image segmentation for analysis was conducted using the central wheel division method (C1-C6), hemisphere segmentation method (SR, SL, IL, and IR), and the early treatment of diabetic retinopathy study method (ETDRS) (R, S, L, and I). Results: Retinal microvascular density was significantly lower in the SjS patients compared to the HCs group (p < 0.05) and much lower in the HCQ group compared to the SjS patients (p < 0.05). The SjS and HCQ groups differed in the I, R, SR, IL, and IR regions in the superficial and deep retina and the S region in the superficial retina. The ROC curves of the relationship between the HCs and SjS groups and between the SjS and HCQ groups demonstrated good classification accuracy. Conclusion: HCQ may contribute significantly to the microvascular alteration in SjS. Microvascular alteration is a potential marker with adjunctive diagnostic value. The MIR and the OCTA images of I, IR, and C1 regions showed high accuracy in minoring the alteration.

Spontaneous changes in brain network centrality in patients with pathological myopia: A voxel-wise degree centrality analysis.

BACKGROUND: Myopia has become a worldwide problem that endangers public health and adds a serious socioeconomic burden. Current research has focused on the pathogenesis and manifestations of pathological myopia (PM). However, few studies have been conducted on the spontaneous activity of the patient's brain. PURPOSE: To study the potential brain network activity in patients with PM by the degree centrality (DC) method. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This experiment included 15 PM patients and 15 healthy controls (HCs). Every participant experienced a resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) scan. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to distinguish between PM patients and HCs. Correlation analysis was used to explore the relationships between mean DC values and clinical performance in different brain regions. RESULTS: It showed that patients with PM had lower DC values in the right fusiform gyrus (FR) and right cingulate (CAR). The ROC curve was used to indicate the accuracy of the correlation. It showed that in PM group, left best corrected visual acuity (BCVA-L) and right best corrected visual acuity (BCVA-R) were negatively correlated with the DC value of FR. CONCLUSION: The occurrence of PM is mainly related to the abnormal activity of the fusiform and cingulum. DC value might be used as a biological marker of abnormal brain activity in PM patients.

Altered Spontaneous Brain Activity Patterns in Children With Strabismic Amblyopia After Low-Frequency Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation: A Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study.

Objective: Previous studies have demonstrated altered brain activity in strabismic amblyopia (SA). In this study, low-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) was applied in children with strabismic amblyopia after they had undergone strabismus surgery. The effect of rTMS was investigated by measuring the changes of brain features using the amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF). Materials and Methods: In this study, 21 SA patients (12 males and 9 females) were recruited based on their age (7-13 years old), weight, and sex. They all had SA in their left eyes and they received rTMS treatment one month after strabismus surgery. Their vision before and after surgery were categorized as pre-rTMS (PRT) and post-rTMS (POT). All participants received rTMS treatment, underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and their data were analyzed using the repeated measures t-test. The team used correlation analysis to explore the relationship between logMAR visual acuity and ALFF. Results: Pre- versus post-rTMS values of ALFF were significantly different within individuals. In the POT group, ALFF values were significantly decreased in the Angular_R (AR), Parietal_Inf_L (PIL), and Cingulum_Mid_R (CMR) while ALFF values were significantly increased in the Fusiform_R (FR) and Frontal_Inf_Orb_L(FIL) compared to the PRT stage. Conclusion: Our data showed that ALFF recorded from some brain regions was changed significantly after rTMS in strabismic amblyopes. The results may infer the pathological basis of SA and demonstrate that visual function may be improved using rTMS in strabismic amblyopic patients.

Brain Activity in Age-Related Macular Degeneration Patients From the Perspective of Regional Homogeneity: A Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study.

Objective: In this study, the regional homogeneity (ReHo) method was used to investigate levels of cerebral homogeneity in individuals with age-related macular degeneration (AMD), with the aim of exploring whether these measures are associated with clinical characteristics. Materials and Methods: Patients with AMD and healthy controls attending the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University were invited to participate. Resting state functional magnetic resonance images were recorded in each participant and levels of synchronous neural activity were evaluated using ReHo. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of this method. Results: Eighteen patients with AMD (9 males and 9 females) and 15 healthy controls (HCs) were recruited. The two groups were approximately matched in age, gender and weight. Compared with controls, the ReHo values were significantly higher in the AMD group at the limbic lobe and parahippocampal gyrus, and were significantly reduced at the cingulate gyrus, superior frontal gyrus, middle frontal gyrus, inferior parietal lobule, and precentral gyrus. Mean ReHo values at the cingulate gyrus and the superior frontal gyrus were negatively correlated with clinical symptoms. Conclusion: Brain neural homogeneity dysfunction is a manifestation of visual pathways in AMD patients, and may be one of the pathological mechanisms of chronic vision loss, anxiety and depression in AMD patients. In addition, the ReHo data may be useful for early screening for AMD.

AFP and CA-125 as an accurate risk factor to predict eye metastasis in hypertension patients with liver carcinoma: A STROBE-compliant article.

Purpose: In this study, we analyzed the differences between hypertension patients with ocular metastasis of liver cancer and those with metastases to other sites, the correlation between history of HBV and liver cancer metastasis, and independent risk factors for ocular metastasis. Methods: We used treatment records from 488 patients with metastases of primary liver cancer from August 2001 to May 2015, divided into two groups based on metastatic sites: OM (ocular metastasis) and NOM (non-ocular, other sites of metastasis) groups. The Student's t-test and Chi-square test were used to assess the significance of differences between the groups and define the relationship between history of HBV and ocular metastasis of liver cancer. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to identify indicators of ocular metastasis of liver cancer and receiver operating curve (ROC) analyses to estimate their diagnostic value. Results: No significant differences in sex, age, tumor stage, pathological type, or treatment were identified between the OM and NOM groups, while the prevalence of HBV was higher in the former than that in latter. Binary logistic regression demonstrated that AFP and CA-125 were independent indicators of liver metastasis (both p < 0.001). ROC curve analyses generated cut-off values for AFP and CA-125 of 957.2 ng/ml and 114.25 U/ml, respectively, with corresponding AUC values of 0.739 and 0.810. The specificity of the combination of AFP and CA-125 was higher than either factor separately. Discussion: To explore the diagnostic value of AFP and CA125 in predicting the development of ocular metastases of hypertensive patients with liver cancer, which will help us to diagnose the occurrence and development of the disease more accurately and make the best clinical diagnosis and treatment measures.

Altered Brain Activity in Patients With Comitant Strabismus Detected by Analysis of the Fractional Amplitude of Low-Frequency Fluctuation: A Resting-State Functional MRI Study.

More and more studies showed that strabismus is not simply an ocular disease, but a neuro-ophthalmology disease. To analyze potential changes in brain activity and their relationship to behavioral performance in comitant strabismus patients and healthy controls. Our study recruited 28 patients with comitant strabismus and 28 people with matched weight, age range, and sex ratio as healthy controls. Using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging, we evaluated fALFF to compare spontaneous brain activity between comitant strabismus and healthy controls. We did hospital anxiety and depression scale questionnaires for these patients. We found significantly lower fALFF value in comitant strabismus patients compared with controls in the left frontal superior medial gyrus and the right middle cingulum. In the latter region, fALFF was significantly negatively correlated with the hospital anxiety and depression scale, as well as the duration of disease. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis indicated that the fALFF method has clear potential for the diagnosis of comitant strabismus patients. These results revealed abnormal spontaneous activity in two brain regions of comitant strabismus patients, which may indicate underlying pathologic mechanisms and may help to advance clinical treatment.

Altered Intrinsic Regional Spontaneous Brain Activity in Patients With Severe Obesity and Meibomian Gland Dysfunction: A Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study.

Purpose: To evaluate potential regional homogeneity (ReHo) cerebrum function lesions in people with severe obesity and meibomian gland dysfunction (SM) and probe the connection between aberrant cerebrum activity and clinical manifestations. Patients and Methods: An aggregation of 12 patients with SM, and 12 healthy controls (HCs) closely matched in age and gender were enrolled. We applied corneal confocal microscopy and fundus angiography to compare imaging distinctions between the two groups. SMs were required to carefully fill out the Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale (HADS) forms, and a correlation analysis was performed. ReHo was also utilized to appraise partial differences in spontaneous cerebrum function. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were created to partition ReHo values between patients with SM and the HCs. Results: ReHo values for the left cerebellum (LC), right fusiform gyrus (RFG), left inferior temporal gyrus (LITG), left rectus gyrus (LRG), right thalamus (RT), right caudate (RC), left insula (LI), and left thalamus (LT) of subjects with SM were notably higher than those of the HCs (P < 0.05). ReHo values of the right middle frontal gyrus (RMFG) in subjects with SM were decreased notably compared to the HCs (P < 0.05). ReHo values for the RMFG showed a negative correlation with the anxiety scores (ASs; r = -0.961, P < 0.001) and ReHo values for the RFG showed a positive correlation with the depression scores (DSs; r = 0.676, P = 0.016). The areas under the ROC curve were 1.000 (P < 0.001) for the RMFG, LC, LITG, LRG, RC, LI, and LT and 0.993 (P < 0.001) for the RFG and RT. The results from the ROC curve analysis indicated that changes in the ReHo values of some brain regions may help diagnose SM. Conclusion: Our research emphasized that patients with SM had lesions in synchronized neural activity in many encephalic areas. Our discoveries may provide beneficial information for exploring the neuromechanics of SM.

Brain Activity in Different Brain Areas of Patients With Dry Eye During the Female Climacteric Period According to Voxel-Based Morphometry.

We aim to investigate potential morphological alterations of the brain in female climacteric patients with dry eye (DE) and their relationship to behavioral performances. Twenty-five female patients with DE disease during the female climacteric period and 25 age and education-matched healthy controls (HCs) underwent magnetic resonance imaging. Imaging data were analyzed using voxel-based morphometry (VBM) to identify group differences in DE patients and HCs. Compared with HCs, patients with DE during the female climacteric period had significantly decreased VBM in the Putamen_L, Thalamus_R, Precuneus_L, Frontal_Sup_R, Cingulum_Mid_L, and Frontal_Mid_L. There was increased VBM in the Temporal_Pole_Sup_R, Precentral_R and Insula_L. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis indicated that the VBM method has clear potential for diagnosis of DE patients during the climacteric period. Correlation analysis found a negative correlation between the VBM values of the Putamen_L and the anxiety score (AS) and depression score (DS), a positive correlation was found between VBM values of the Temporal_Pole_Sup_R and AS. Moreover, VBM values in the Cingulum_Mid_L were positively correlated with AS and DS. These results revealed abnormal spontaneous activity in the brain regions of patients with DE during the climacteric period, which may indicate underlying pathological mechanisms. These results may help to advance clinical treatments.

Regional Homogeneity in Patients With Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study.

Objective: To analyze the potential changes in brain neural networks in resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) scans by regional homogeneity (ReHo) in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Methods: We recruited and selected 24 volunteers, including 12 patients (6 men and 6 women) with MCI and 12 healthy controls matched by age, sex, and lifestyle. All subjects were examined with rs-fMRI to evaluate changes in neural network connectivity, and the data were analyzed by ReHo method. Correlation analysis was used to investigate the relationship between ReHo values and clinical features in different brain regions of MCI patients. The severity of MCI was determined by the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scale. Results: The signals of the right cerebellum areas 4 and 5, left superior temporal, right superior temporal, left fusiform, and left orbital middle frontal gyri in the patient group were significantly higher than those in the normal group (P < 0.01 by t-test of paired samples). The signal intensity of the right inferior temporal and left inferior temporal gyri was significantly lower than that of the normal group (P < 0.01). The ReHO value for the left inferior temporal gyrus correlated negatively with disease duration, and the value for the right inferior temporal gyrus correlated positively with MMSE scores. Conclusion: Mild cognitive impairment in patients with pre- Alzheimer's disease may be related to the excitation and inhibition of neural networks in these regions. This may have a certain guiding significance for clinical diagnosis.

Decreased Macular Retinal Thickness in Patients With Pterygium.

Purpose: To explore alterations in macular retinal thickness (RT) and analyze correlation between macular RT and pterygium area, length in pterygium patients. Methods: Totally 13 patients with pterygium (left eye) and 13 healthy controls (left eye) were recruited. OCTA was applied to scan each eye to generate three-dimensional images. Based on the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) method, each image was divided into nine subregions for the ETDRS: central (C); inner superior (IS); outer superior (OS); inner nasal (IN); outer nasal (ON); inner inferior (II); outer inferior (OI); inner temporal (IT); and outer temporal (OT). The macular RT in each subregion was measured. Furthermore, the correlation between RT and the area, length of pterygium was analyzed. Results: The visual acuity of pterygium patient was different from that of the control (P < 0.05). Besides, decreased intraretinal thickness of the IN and ON, increased intraretinal thickness of OT, decreased extraretinal thickness of OT, IN, ON, OS, and decreased retinal full layer thickness of medial superior, OS, IN, ON, and II subregions in pterygium group were observed. There was a negative correlation between RT of the IN and ON subregions and the length of pterygium (r = -0.5803 and r = -0.6013, P = 0.0376 and P = 0.0297). The RT of IN subregion was negatively correlated with pterygium area (r = -0.5844, P = 0.0359). According to the receiver operating characteristic analysis, in the ON subregion, the areas under the curve of the inner retinal thickness, outer retinal thickness and the whole retinal thickness were 1.0 (95% CI: 1.0), 0.882 (95% CI: 0.715 and 0.963), and 1.0 (95% CI: 1.0). The smallest area under the curve of retinal thickness in OT subregion was 0.018 (95% CI: 0-0.059). Conclusion: RT of pterygium patients was significantly decreased, and the main alterations occurred in the temporal side suggesting there might exist retinal structural alterations in pterygium.

Altered Brain Activity in Strabismic Amblyopic Children as Determined by Regional Homogeneity: A Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study.

Objective: Earlier research has determined that amblyopia or strabismus may cause remarkable brain anatomical and functional variations. Nonetheless, thus far, the spontaneous changes in brain activity in children with strabismus amblyopia (SA) remain unclear. The purpose of this study was to determine the association between abnormal brain activity in children with SA and its behavioral manifestations. Patients and Methods: ?A total of 24 children with SA (10 male and 14 female children) as well as 24 healthy controls (HCs), including 10 male and 14 female children were closely matched in sex and age, and examined using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). The regional homogeneity (ReHo) technique was applied to evaluate spontaneous cerebral activity variations in children with SA and HCs. Moreover, associations between altered ReHo values in distinct cerebral areas and the degree of strabismus were assessed using Pearson correlation analysis. Results: Remarkably increased ReHo values were observed in the right lingual, right superior frontal medial, bilateral superior parietal, and right inferior parietal gyri of children with SA compared with HCs. In contrast, mean ReHo values in children with SA were lower in the right cerebellum, left superior frontal gyrus, and left putamen nucleus. Furthermore, esotropia showed a positive correlation with ReHo values of the left putamen. Conclusion: The anomalous spontaneous activity changes in several brain areas that are caused by SA may indicate neuropathologic mechanisms of visual deficits and oculomotor disorders in children with SA.

Corrigendum: Characteristics of the Fractional Amplitude of Low-Frequency Fluctuation in Ocular Hypertension Patients: A Resting-State fMRI Study.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2021.687420.].