"Smart" Cap Records Brain Activity

A lightweight, imaging cap being designed to assess brain function may go where no MRI has gone before.

Scientists at the National Space Biomedical Research Institute, a consortium of medical institutions including Baylor College of Medicine, Rice University and Texas A&M University devoted to studying the health risks related to long-duration space flight, are developing the cap to assist astronauts on space missions.

"On extended space missions, there will be a need to assess brain function as it relates to performance of high-level tasks and in the event of possible illness or injury," said Jeffrey Sutton, M.D., Ph.D., director of the National Space Biomedical Research Institute and leader of its smart medical systems team. "This portable technology will also be beneficial on Earth for assessing, diagnosing and monitoring treatment of brain disorders, such as strokes and seizures."

The device utilizes diffuse optical tomography, or DOT, a technique using near-infrared light and detectors to record brain activity. The light shines through the skull into the brain and records regional differences in blood flow and oxygen levels. These differences are then analyzed to reveal areas of brain activity.

Study participants are being evaluated doing relatively simple tasks, such as hand movements, under normal and sleep-deprived conditions. The device is also being tested on patients experiencing changes in intracranial pressure, a condition that may be found in space. The imaging cap’s performs is being compared to functional magnetic resonance imaging, the current standard for measuring brain activity non-invasively. The two techniques, fMRI and DOT, are compatible, allowing both tests to be run on a participant simultaneously.

"Although we know fMRI has better spatial resolution, the imaging cap is portable, lightweight, less confining and will allow astronauts or patients to move around during assessments," Sutton said.

For its potential use in space, Sutton’s research group is focusing on the device’s ability to detect brain function associated with performance of high-level tasks in real-life settings. Another feature is the system’s potential for real-time evaluation of neurobehavioral problems, headaches, head trauma and changes in intracranial pressure.

Computer systems are also being developed that will allow automated interpretation of data from the imaging cap. This function would be necessary in space to avoid lost time transmitting data to Earth for evaluation and also would be beneficial for Earth-based use in physician’s clinics.

"Just like automated interpretation of electrocardiograms, this in-office brain function assessment could enhance a physician’s ability to diagnose a problem and take the appropriate action," Sutton said.

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©2006 Texas Medical Center

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