Affiliation:
1. Division of Development and Growth, Department of Paediatrics, Gynaecology and Obstetrics Geneva University Hospitals and University of Geneva Geneva Switzerland
2. Neuro‐X Institute École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne Geneva Switzerland
3. Department of Radiology and Medical Informatics, Faculty of Medicine University of Geneva Geneva Switzerland
4. SensoriMotor, Affective and Social Development Laboratory, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences University of Geneva Geneva Switzerland
Abstract
AimAdolescents born very preterm (VPT; <32 weeks of gestation) face an elevated risk of executive, behavioral, and socioemotional difficulties. Evidence suggests beneficial effects of mindfulness‐based intervention (MBI) on these abilities. This study seeks to investigate the association between the effects of MBI on executive, behavioral, and socioemotional functioning and reliable changes in large‐scale brain networks dynamics during rest in VPT young adolescents who completed an 8‐week MBI program.MethodsNeurobehavioral assessments and resting‐state functional magnetic resonance imaging were performed before and after MBI in 32 VPT young adolescents. Neurobehavioral abilities in VPT participants were compared with full‐term controls. In the VPT group, dynamic functional connectivity was extracted by using the innovation‐driven coactivation patterns framework. The reliable change index was used to quantify change after MBI. A multivariate data‐driven approach was used to explore associations between MBI‐related changes on neurobehavioral measures and temporal brain dynamics.ResultsCompared with term‐born controls, VPT adolescents showed reduced executive and socioemotional functioning before MBI. After MBI, a significant improvement was observed for all measures that were previously reduced in the VPT group. The increase in executive functioning, only, was associated with reliable changes in the duration of activation of large‐scale brain networks, including frontolimbic, amygdala‐hippocampus, dorsolateral prefrontal, and visual networks.ConclusionThe improvement in executive functioning after an MBI was associated with reliable changes in large‐scale brain network dynamics during rest. These changes encompassed frontolimbic, amygdala‐hippocampus, dorsolateral prefrontal, and visual networks that are related to different executive processes including self‐regulation, attentional control, and attentional awareness of relevant sensory stimuli.
Funder
Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung