Lateralisation of subcortical functional connectivity during and after general anaesthesia

Tommer Nir, Reut Raizman, Inbar Meningher, Yael Jacob, Kuang Han Huang, Arthur E. Schwartz, Jess W. Brallier, Helen Ahn, Prantik Kundu, Cheuk Y. Tang, Bradley N. Delman, Patrick J. McCormick, Julia Scarpa, Mary Sano, Stacie G. Deiner, Abigail Livny, Mark G. Baxter, Joshua S. Mincer*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

6 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background: Arousal and awareness are two important components of consciousness states. Functional neuroimaging has furthered our understanding of cortical and thalamocortical mechanisms of awareness. Investigating the relationship between subcortical functional connectivity and arousal has been challenging owing to the relatively small size of brainstem structures and thalamic nuclei, and their depth in the brain. Methods: Resting state functional MRI scans of 72 healthy volunteers were acquired before, during, 1 h after, and 1 day after sevoflurane general anaesthesia. Functional connectivity of subcortical regions of interest vs whole brain and homotopic functional connectivity for assessment of left–right symmetry analyses of both cortical and subcortical regions of interest were performed. Both analyses used high resolution atlases generated from deep brain stimulation applications. Results: Functional connectivity in subcortical loci within the thalamus and of the ascending reticular activating system was sharply restricted under anaesthesia, featuring a general lateralisation of connectivity. Similarly, left–right homology was sharply reduced under anaesthesia. Subcortical bilateral functional connectivity was not fully restored after emergence from anaesthesia, although greater restoration was seen between ascending reticular activating system loci and specific thalamic nuclei thought to be involved in promoting and maintaining arousal. Functional connectivity was fully restored to baseline by the following day. Conclusions: Functional connectivity in the subcortex is sharply restricted and lateralised under general anaesthesia. This restriction may play a part in loss and return of consciousness. Clinical trial registration: NCT02275026.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)65-76
Number of pages12
JournalBritish Journal of Anaesthesia
Volume128
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 2022

Keywords

  • anaesthesia
  • arousal
  • consciousness
  • fMRI
  • reticular formation
  • subcortex
  • thalamus

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Lateralisation of subcortical functional connectivity during and after general anaesthesia'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this