Spontaneous Recovery from Unresponsive Wakefulness Syndrome to a Minimally Conscious State: Early Structural Changes Revealed by 7-T Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Background: Determining the early changes of brain structure that occur from vegetative state/unresponsive wakefulness syndrome (VS/UWS) to a minimally conscious state (MCS) is important for developing our understanding of the processes underlying disorders of consciousness (DOC), particularly during spontaneous recovery from severe brain damage. Objective: This study used a multi-modal neuroimaging approach to investigate early structural changes during spontaneous recovery from VS/UWS to MCS. Methods: The Coma Recovery Scale-Revised (CRS-R) score, 24-h electroencephalography (EEG), and ultra-high field 7 Tesla Magnetic Resonance Imaging were used to investigate a male patient with severe brain injury when he was in VS/UWS compared to MCS. Using white matter connectometry analysis, fibers in MCS were compared with the same fibers in VS/UWS. Whole brain analysis was used to compare all fibers showing a 10% increase in density with each other as a population. Results: Based on connectometry analysis, the number of fibers with increased density, and the magnitude of increase in MCS compared to VS/UWS, were greatest in the area of the temporoparietal junction (TPJ), and were mostly located in the right hemisphere. These results are in accordance with the active areas observed on 24-h EEG recordings. Moreover, analysis of different fibers across the brain, showing at least a 10% increase in density, revealed that altered white matter connections with higher discriminative weights were located within or across visual-related areas, including the cuneus_R, calcarine_R, occipital_sup_R, and occipital_mid_R. Furthermore, the temporal_mid_R, which is related to the auditory cortex, showed the highest increase in connectivity to other areas. This was consistent with improvements in the visual and auditory components of the CRS-R, which were greater than other improvements. Conclusion: These results provide evidence to support the important roles for the TPJ and the visual and auditory sensory systems in the early recovery of a patient with severe brain injury. Our findings may facilitate a much deeper understanding of the mechanisms underlying conscious-related processes and enlighten treatment strategies for patients with DOC.