Dynamic Alterations in Spontaneous Neural Activity in Multiple Brain Networks in Subacute Stroke Patients: A Resting-State fMRI Study

Objective: To examine whether subacute stroke patients would exhibit abnormal dynamic characteristics of brain activity relative to healthy controls (HC) and to investigate whether the altered dynamic regional indexes were associated with clinical behavior in stroke patients. Methods: The dynamic amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (dALFF) and dynamic regional homogeneity (dReHo) in 42 subacute stroke patients and 55 healthy controls were compared. Correlation analyses between dALFF and dReHo in regions showing significant intergroup differences and clinical scores (i.e., the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale, Fugl-Meyer assessment and lesion volume size) were conducted in stroke patients. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to determine the potential value of altered dynamic regional indexes to identify stroke patients. Results: Significantly dALFF in the bilateral cerebellum posterior lobe (CPL), ipsilesional superior parietal lobe, ipsilesional inferior temporal gyrus (ITG), the midline supplementary motor area (SMA), ipsilesional putamen and lentiform nucleus were detected in stroke patients compared to HC. Relative to the HC group, the stroke patients showed significant differences in dReHo in the contralesional rectal gyrus, contralesional ITG, contralesional pons, ipsilesional middle frontal gyrus (MFG). Significant correlations between dALFF variability in midline SMA and Fugl-Meyer assessment (FMA) scores or between dReHo variability in the ipsilesional MFG and FMA scores were detected in stroke patients. Furthermore, the ROC curve revealed that dynamic ALFF at SMA and ReHo at ipsilesional MFG might have the potential to distinguish stroke patients. Conclusion: The pattern of intrinsic brain activity variability is altered in stroke patients compared with HC, and dynamic ALFF/ReHo might be potential tools to assess stroke patients’ motor function.