A NIRS-Based Technique for Monitoring Brain Tissue Oxygenation in Stroke Patients

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Biomedical Engineering
• Rehabilitation Medicine

Background:

• Stroke is a leading cause of motor disability worldwide.
• Monitoring brain tissue oxygenation is vital for understanding stroke severity and progression.
• Current imaging methods like CT and fMRI are sensitive but may not be ideal for continuous monitoring.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the feasibility of using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to assess brain tissue oxygenation in chronic stroke patients undergoing rehabilitation.
• To develop and validate a complete protocol for fNIRS sensor placement, signal acquisition, and processing for stroke patient monitoring.

Main Methods:

• Ten healthy subjects and three chronic stroke patients participated in the study.
• fNIRS sensors were placed on the forehead to measure brain oxygenation.
• A protocol involving resting state, motor tasks (hand opening/closing), and rest periods was implemented.

Main Results:

• Measurable changes in oxygen saturation were observed in healthy subjects during motor tasks compared to rest.
• Statistically significant differences in oxygen saturation were found between resting and movement conditions in healthy individuals (females p=0.016, males p=0.005).
• The study demonstrated the feasibility of the proposed fNIRS system, protocol, and processing for monitoring stroke patients.

Conclusions:

• The developed fNIRS-based approach is a feasible, non-invasive method for monitoring cerebral oxygenation in stroke patients during rehabilitation.
• This technique has the potential for implementation in non-controlled clinical environments.
• fNIRS offers a promising tool for assessing brain tissue status in stroke recovery.