Oral Presentation ANZBA Annual Scientific Meeting 2025

Investigating the impact of pediatric burn injury on the brain using MRI (22854)

Amira AA Allahham 1 2 , Mark MF Fear 1 2 , Lisa LM Martin 1 2 3 , Sjoerd SV Vos 4 , Victoria VS Shoesmith 1 3 , Fiona Wood 5 6
  1. Fiona Wood Foundation - Burn Injury Research Unit, Fiona Wood Foundation, 11 Robin Warren Dr, Murdoch WA 6150, Perth, WA, Australia
  2. Burn Injury Research Unit, University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
  3. Burns Unit, Perth Children’s Hospital, 15 Hospital Ave, Nedlands WA 6009 Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
  4. National Imaging Facility, Harry Perkins Institute for Medical Research, 6 Verdun St, Nedlands WA 6009, Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
  5. Fiona Wood Foundation, East Victoria Park, PERTH, WA, Australia
  6. Burn Injury Research Unit, University of Western Australia, Burn Injury Research Unit, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia, Perth, WA, Australia

Background: Children with burn injuries have a higher risk of being admitted to hospital for mental health conditions. Previous animal model studies have shown significant transcriptomic and metabolomic changes in the central nervous system (CNS) 3 months after a non-severe burn, suggesting a physiological impact of burn trauma on the brain that persists after recovery.

Aim: This study aims to investigate the potential physiological impact of non-severe burn injuries on the brain in a paediatric burn population compared to uninjured controls using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI).

Method: The burn group includes paediatric burn patients with a burn injury ≥1% of their total body surface area (TBSA) more than 5 months postburn. The MRI scans were done in a 40-minute session that included the following scans: 3D-T1-weighted scan, 3D-T2-FLAIR, resting-state functional scan, and task-based functional scan. Together, these scans measured structure, function, and metabolism in the brain.

Results: Preliminary results suggest changes in the volume of the certain regions within the parietal lobe including a 1245mm2 cluster in the superior parietal lobe as well as changes in network connectivity between the frontal lobe and the somatosensory cortex.

Conclusions: The data in this study supported the hypothesis that there are changes to the CNS after non-severe burns. Volumetric and network data suggests both functional and structural changes were present in the brain after burns. This study will help us better understand the physiological impact of burn trauma on the CNS, providing opportunity to explore links between physiological changes and mental health postburn.