Systematic evaluation of head motion on resting‐state functional connectivity MRI in the neonate

Reliability and robustness of resting state functional connectivity MRI (rs‐fcMRI) relies, in part, on minimizing the influence of head motion on measured brain signals. The confounding effects of head motion on functional connectivity have been extensively studied in adults, but its impact on newborn brain connectivity remains unexplored. Here, using a large newborn data set consisting of 159 rs‐fcMRI scans acquired in the Developing Brain Institute at Children's National Hospital and 416 scans from The Developing Human Connectome Project (dHCP), we systematically investigated associations between head motion and rs‐fcMRI. Head motion during the scan significantly affected connectivity at sensory‐related networks and default mode networks, and at the whole brain scale; the direction of motion effects varied across the whole brain. Comparing high‐ versus low‐head motion groups suggested that head motion can impact connectivity estimates across the whole brain. Censoring of high‐motion volumes using frame‐wise displacement significantly reduced the confounding effects of head motion on neonatal rs‐fcMRI. Lastly, in the dHCP data set, we demonstrated similar persistent associations between head motion and network connectivity despite implementing a standard denoising strategy. Collectively, our results highlight the importance of using rigorous head motion correction in preprocessing neonatal rs‐fcMRI to yield reliable estimates of brain activity.