Intrinsic Brain Abnormalities of Irritable Bowel Syndrome with Diarrhea: A Preliminary Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

Background: The aim of the present study was to explore the brain active characteristics of patients with irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea (IBS-D) using resting-state funcational magnetic resonance imaging (rsfMRI) technology. Methods: : Thirteen IBS-D patients and fourteen healthy controls (HC) were enrolled. All subjects underwent head MRI examination during resting state. A voxel-based analysis of fractional amplitude of lowfrequency fluctuation (fALFF) maps between IBS-D and HC was performed using a two-sample t -test. The relationship between the fALFF values in abnormal brain regions and the scores of Symptom Severity Scale (IBS-SSS) were analyzed using Pearson correlation analysis. Results: : Compared with HC, IBS-D patients had lower fALFF values in the left medial superior frontal gyrus and higher fALFF values in the left hippocampus and right precuneus. There was a positive correlation between the duration scores of IBS-SSS and fALFF values in the right precuneus. Conclusion: The altered fALFF values in the medial superior frontal gyri, left hippocampus and right precuneus revealed changes of intrinsic neuronal activity, further revealing the abnormality of gut-brain axis of IBS-D.