Altered Intrinsic Functional Connectivity of the Primary Visual Cortex in Patients with Neovascular Glaucoma: A Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

Yuan-Yuan Wu,* Shui-Feng Wang,* Pei-Wen Zhu, Qing Yuan, Wen-Qing Shi, Qi Lin, Biao Li, You-Lan Min, Qiong Zhou, Yi Shao Department of Ophthalmology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang 330006, Jiangxi, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Qiong Zhou; Yi ShaoDepartment of Ophthalmology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, 17 Yongwaizheng Street, Donghu, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330006, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail 1357483244@qq.com; freebee99@163.comPurpose: The purpose was to investigate the differences in spontaneous functional connectivity (FC) of the primary visual cortex (V1) between patients with neovascular glaucoma (NVG) and healthy controls (HCs) using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data.Methods: A total of 18 patients with NVG (nine males and nine females) and 18 HCs with similar age and sex background were enrolled in the study and inspected using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging. The differences in FC of the V1 between the two groups were compared using the independent samples t-test. We used the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve to compare the average FC values of NVG subjects with those of HCs.Results: FC in the left V1 and right fusiform gyrus, bilateral cuneus, and left precuneus was significantly decreased in the NVG group compared with that reported in the HC group. Meanwhile, patients with NVG presented increased FC between the right V1 and bilateral middle frontal gyrus. However, they also exhibited declining FC between the right V1 and left precuneus, and bilateral cuneus. The ROC curve analysis of each brain region indicated that the accuracy of the area under the ROC curves regarding NVG was excellent.Conclusion: NVG involves aberrant FC in the V1 in different brain areas, including the visual-related and cognitive-related regions. These findings may assist in unveiling the underlying neural mechanisms of impaired visual function in NVG.Keywords: neovascular glaucoma, functional connectivity, spontaneous brain activity, primary visual cortex