Cortical thickness of the frontopolar area in typically developing children and adolescents

The development of the frontopolar cortex (FPC) through late childhood and adolescence was investigated using measures of cortical thickness. T(1)-weighted structural MRIs from 35 typically developing participants aged 8-20 years were used to construct 3D models of the brain, from which cortical thickness was measured. There was a significant inverse association between age and cortical thickness, such that cortical thickness decreased as age increased between 8 and 20 years. There was no effect of laterality or gender on cortical thickness.