A practical application regarding the age associations with the normalized DTI-derived data was conducted to further compare the SACT template and the adult template. Compared with the tensor template of adults, the SACT template revealed significantly higher spatial normalization accuracy and inter-subject coherence upon evaluation of subjects in two different datasets of school-age children. With an age-balanced design, the SACT template represented the entire age range well by showing high similarity to the age-specific templates. Here, we established the school-age children diffusion tensor (SACT) template by optimizing tensor reorientation on high-quality DTI data from a large sample of cognitively normal participants aged 6–12 years. However, there is a lack of a standardized diffusion tensor template dedicated to school-age children with ongoing brain development. Using tensor-based registration with an appropriate diffusion tensor template presents high accuracy regarding spatial normalization.

In the analysis of DWI data, spatial normalization is crucial for conducting inter-subject analyses or linking the individual space with the reference space. Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DWI), especially diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), is extensively used to characterize the maturation by assessing white matter properties in vivo. School-age children are in a specific development stage corresponding to juvenility, when the white matter of the brain experiences ongoing maturation.

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