Brain Imaging for Youth with Neurodevelopmental Disorders and Behaviours of Concern

Summary

Neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) impact a person's developing brain. NDDs are conditions like intellectual disability and autism. Children with NDDs often have behaviours of concern such as hurting themselves or others. These behaviours are hard to understand and treat. Brain imaging such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can help us understand the brain. Taking brain images from these children can help us understand more about these behaviours. As brain imaging needs children to lie still for minutes in a small space, it is very hard to do this for children with NDDs who have behaviours of concern. As a result, little is known about the developing brain in these patients. Our research team is developing a protocol for imaging children with NDDs who have behaviours of concern without sedation. We will use it in a pilot study to look at their brains for differences that might help us understand and treat these behaviours.