Functional magnetic resonance imaging in neurology

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Medical Imaging
• Clinical Neurology

Background:

• Functional MRI (fMRI) is increasingly utilized in clinical neurology.
• Its reliability and reproducibility make it valuable for diagnosing and managing neurological conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the clinical applications of fMRI in common neurological diseases.
• To highlight fMRI's role in presurgical planning, prognosis, and monitoring treatment efficacy.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature on fMRI applications in epilepsy, stroke, multiple sclerosis (MS), Alzheimer's disease (AD), and Parkinson's disease (PD).
• Discussion of fMRI's ability to map eloquent areas, predict functional decline, and assess brain reorganization.

Main Results:

• fMRI is crucial for epilepsy presurgical evaluation, predicting memory decline, and determining hemispheric dominance.
• fMRI aids in stroke by identifying the penumbra and predicting recovery, and in MS by showing adaptive reorganization.
• fMRI detects early changes in AD and monitors treatment, and elucidates therapeutic mechanisms in Parkinson's disease.

Conclusions:

• fMRI is a versatile diagnostic and prognostic tool across a spectrum of neurological disorders.
• It provides critical insights into brain function, reorganization, and therapeutic responses.
• fMRI's ability to detect early functional alterations is key for timely intervention and management.