Examining Structural Brain MRI Metrics in Children with Craniofacial Linear Scleroderma
Project Period:
2024-2025
Grant Category:
Small Grant
Disease Area:
Scleroderma, SVARD
Craniofacial localized scleroderma (Cf-LS) is a rare disease that affects the face and scalp tissues. It is commonly diagnosed around age 6 years on average, during brain maturation. Nearly half of children with Cf-LS have abnormalities on brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), often linked to symptoms like headache or seizures. Yet, some children may still experience brain changes even without symptoms or obvious abnormalities on clinical MRI. Advanced techniques in brain imaging may help detect subtle changes. This study will use these techniques to look at brain structure in children with Cf-LS and to see if their brains differ from healthy peers of similar age and sex. We will test if brain structure relates to disease status and outcomes important to patients such as quality of life. We hope that this study will help us to better understand how Cf-LS affects the developing brain.
Investigators
![](https://carragroup.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/andrea-knight.jpg)
Andrea Knight, MD, MSCE
The Hospital for Sick Children![](https://carragroup.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/diana-valdes.jpg)
Diana Cabrera Valdés, PhD
The Hospital for Sick Children