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Practical Aspects of Running Developmental Studies in the MEG

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Abstract

Developmental neuroimaging studies offer a unique opportunity to gain insight into the underpinnings of various cognitive functions by examining age-related changes in brain structure and function. There is an increasing body of neuroimaging literature discussing issues related to testing children in developmental studies (Crone et al. Human Brain Mapping 31:835–837, 2010). These deal with fMRI developmental studies and discuss methods (Luna et al. Human Brain Mapp 31:863–871, 2010), data interpretation (Poldrack Human Brain Mapp 31:872–878, 2010), and theoretical approaches (Karmiloff-Smith Human Brain Mapp 31:934–941, 2010). There has not yet been an equivalent discussion for MEG developmental studies. This paper will address issues specific to data acquisition, analysis, and interpretation for MEG developmental studies.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) MOP-81161. The author would like to thank Matt MacDonald and Travis Mills for comments on earlier versions of this manuscript. The author would also like to thank the many dedicated and determined research assistants, technologists, graduate students and post-docs who have made developmental studies possible and successful in our institution. Finally, thanks to the many young participants and their families who volunteer for studies in the Sick Kids MEG lab. Without the gift of their time and energy, these studies would not be possible.

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  1. Division of Neurology/Department of Paediatrics, Hospital for Sick Children/University of Toronto, 555 University Avenue, Toronto, ON, M5G 1X8, Canada

    Elizabeth W. Pang

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  1. Elizabeth W. Pang
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Correspondence to Elizabeth W. Pang.

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This is one of several papers published together in Brain Topography on the “Special Issue: Brain Imaging across the Lifespan”.

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Pang, E.W. Practical Aspects of Running Developmental Studies in the MEG. Brain Topogr 24, 253–260 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10548-011-0175-0

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