Your Donations in Action: Pratheek Bobba, MD

Because their brains are still in critical stages of development, very preterm infants (VPIs) are at higher risk for developmental challenges.

Any differences in birth weight or early growth may have significant effects on brain microstructure.

For his 2023 RSNA Research Medical Student Grant project, Pratheek Bobba, MD, then a medical student at Yale Medical School in New Haven, CT, and colleagues sought to characterize how birth weight and post-natal growth are associated with brain microstructural development in VPIs.

The researchers analyzed diffusion tensor imaging sequences of these infants to quantify the relationship of birth weight with white matter microstructural development patterns and delineated the impact of postnatal growth on white matter microstructure independent of weight at time of birth.

They applied both voxel-wise tract-base statistical analysis and tract-specific multivariate regression models to test their hypotheses, adjusting for gestational age at birth as well as at the time of scan.

The results showed that in very preterm infants, both birth weight and postnatal weight gain were significantly associated with white matter maturation, especially in the corpus callosum and sagittal striatum regardless of gestational age.

“Our study characterizes imaging markers of brain microstructural development in response to post-natal growth, which can provide early feedback regarding the efficacy of nutritional interventions for improving long-term outcomes in this vulnerable population,” Dr. Bobba said.

Dr. Bobba’s R&E Foundation grant gave him the opportunity to secure dedicated research time during his fourth year of medical school to continue pursuing his research interests.

“My work on this project has allowed me to further develop my skills as a researcher and continue progressing on my path toward a career in academic radiology,” Dr. Bobba said. “Successful completion of the project also increased my confidence as an independent researcher and inspired me to continue pursuing research in my future career as a radiologist.”

For More Information

Learn more about R&E Foundation funding opportunities.

Read our previous Your Donations in Action story.