Juha Heiskala

Modeling anisotropic light propagation in a realistic model of the human head

A Monte Carlo model capable of describing photon migration in arbitrary three-dimensional geometry with spatially varying optical properties and tissue anisotropy is presented. We use the model to explore the effects of anisotropy for optical measurements of the human head. An anisotropic diffusion equation that corresponds to our Monte Carlo model is derived, and a comparison between the Monte Carlo model and the diffusion equation solution with finite elements is given.

Significance of background optical properties, time-resolved information and optode arrangement in diffuse optical imaging of term neonates

The significance of accurate knowledge of background optical properties and time-resolved information in reconstructing images of hemodynamic changes in the neonatal brain from diffuse optical imaging data was studied using Monte Carlo (MC) simulation. A segmented anatomical magnetic resonance (MR) image and literature-derived optical properties for each tissue type were used to create a voxel-based anatomical model. Small absorbing perturbations were introduced into the anatomical model to simulate localized hemodynamic responses related to brain activation. Perturbation MC (pMC) was used as the primary method of image reconstruction. For comparison, reconstructions were also performed using the finite element method (FEM) to solve the diffusion approximation (DA) to the radiative transfer equation (RTE). The effect of optode layout was investigated using three different grids. Of the factors studied, the density of the optode grid was found to have the greatest effect on image quality. The use of time-resolved information significantly improved the spatial accuracy with all optode grids. Adequate knowledge and modeling of the optical properties of the background was found to significantly improve the spatial accuracy of the reconstructed images and make the recovery of contrast of absorption changes more consistent over simplified modeling. Localization accuracy of small perturbations was found to be 2-3 mm with accurate a priori knowledge of the background optical properties, when a grid with high optode density (>1 optode cm(-2)) was used.

Probabilistic atlas can improve reconstruction from optical imaging of the neonatal brain

Diffuse optical imaging is an emerging medical imaging modality based on near-infrared and visible red light. The method can be used for imaging activations in the human brain. In this study, a deformable probabilistic atlas of the distribution of tissue types within the term neonatal head was created based on MR images. The use of anatomical prior information provided by such atlas in reconstructing brain activations from optical imaging measurements was studied using Monte Carlo simulations. The results suggest that use of generic anatomical information can greatly improve the spatial accuracy and robustness of the reconstruction when noise is present in the data.

Approximation error method can reduce artifacts due to scalp blood flow in optical brain activation imaging

Abstract. Diffuse optical tomography can image the hemodynamic response to an activation in the human brain by measuring changes in optical absorption of near-infrared light. Since optodes placed on the scalp are used, the measurements are very sensitive to changes in optical attenuation in the scalp, making optical brain activation imaging susceptible to artifacts due to effects of systemic circulation and local circulation of the scalp. We propose to use the Bayesian approximation error approach to reduce these artifacts. The feasibility of the approach is evaluated using simulated brain activations. When a localized cortical activation occurs simultaneously with changes in the scalp blood flow, these changes can mask the cortical activity causing spurious artifacts. We show that the proposed approach is able to recover from these artifacts even when the nominal tissue properties are not well known.

Effect of task-related extracerebral circulation on diffuse optical tomography: experimental data and simulations on the forehead

The effect of task-related extracerebral circulatory changes on diffuse optical tomography (DOT) of brain activation was evaluated using experimental data from 14 healthy human subjects and computer simulations. Total hemoglobin responses to weekday-recitation, verbal-fluency, and hand-motor tasks were measured with a high-density optode grid placed on the forehead. The tasks caused varying levels of mental and physical stress, eliciting extracerebral circulatory changes that the reconstruction algorithm was unable to fully distinguish from cerebral hemodynamic changes, resulting in artifacts in the brain activation images. Crosstalk between intra- and extracranial layers was confirmed by the simulations. The extracerebral effects were attenuated by superficial signal regression and depended to some extent on the heart rate, thus allowing identification of hemodynamic changes related to brain activation during the verbal-fluency task. During the hand-motor task, the extracerebral component was stronger, making the separation less clear. DOT provides a tool for distinguishing extracerebral components from signals of cerebral origin. Especially in the case of strong task-related extracerebral circulatory changes, however, sophisticated reconstruction methods are needed to eliminate crosstalk artifacts.

Significance of tissue anisotropy in optical tomography of the infant brain

We study the effect of tissue anisotropy in optical tomography of neonates. A Monte Carlo method capable of modeling photon migration in an arbitrary 3D tissue model with spatially varying optical properties and tissue anisotropy is used for simulating measurements of neonates. Anatomical and diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging of neonates are used for creating the anatomical models. We find that tissue anisotropy affects the measured signal and the pattern of sensitivity in optical measurements.

Affective and non-affective touch evoke differential brain responses in 2-month-old infants

ABSTRACT Caressing touch is an effective way to communicate emotions and to create social bonds. It is also one of the key mediators of early parental bonding. The caresses are generally thought to represent a social form of touching and indeed, slow, gentle brushing is encoded in specialized peripheral nerve fibers, the C‐tactile (CT) afferents. In adults, areas such as the posterior insula and superior temporal sulcus are activated by affective, slow stroking touch but not by fast stroking stimulation. However, whether these areas are activated in infants, after social tactile stimulation, is unknown. In this study, we compared the total hemoglobin responses measured with diffuse optical tomography (DOT) in the left hemisphere following slow and fast stroking touch stimulation in 16 2‐month‐old infants. We compared slow stroking (optimal CT afferent stimulation) to fast stroking (non‐optimal CT stimulation). Activated regions were delineated using two methods: one based on contrast between the two conditions, and the other based on voxel‐based statistical significance of the difference between the two conditions. The first method showed a single activation cluster in the temporal cortex with center of gravity in the middle temporal gyrus where the total hemoglobin increased after the slow stroking relative to the fast stroking (p = 0.04 uncorrected). The second method revealed a cluster in the insula with an increase in total hemoglobin in the insular cortex in response to slow stroking relative to fast stroking (p = 0.0005 uncorrected; p = 0.04 corrected for multiple comparisons). These activation clusters encompass areas that are involved in processing of affective, slow stroking touch in the adult brain. We conclude that the infant brain shows a pronounced and adult‐like response to slow stroking touch compared to fast stroking touch in the insular cortex but the expected response in the primary somatosensory cortex was not found at this age. The results imply that emotionally valent touch is encoded in the brain in adult‐like manner already soon after birth and this suggests a potential for involvement of touch in bonding with the caretaker.

Optical tomographic imaging of activation of the infant auditory cortex using perturbation Monte Carlo with anatomical a priori information

We have developed a perturbation Monte Carlo method for calculating forward and inverse solutions to the optical tomography imaging problem in the presence of anatomical a priori information. The method uses frequency domain data. In the present work, we consider the problem of imaging hemodynamic changes due to brain activation in the infant brain. We test finite element method and Monte Carlo based implementations using a homogeneous model with the exterior of the domain warped to match digitized points on the skin. With the perturbation Monte Carlo model, we also test a heterogeneous model based on anatomical a priori information derived from a previously recorded infant T1 magnetic resonance (MR) image. Our simulations show that the anatomical information improves the accuracy of reconstructions quite significantly even if the anatomical MR images are based on another infant. This suggests that significant benefits can be obtained by the use of generic infant brain atlas information in near-infrared spectroscopy and optical tomography studies.

An application of perturbation Monte Carlo in optical tomography

Haemodynamic changes related to activation of the human visual cortex were studied using optical imaging. The change in oxyhaemoglobin concentration in the visual cortex was estimated using a perturbation Monte Carlo (pMC) method. Comparison to a topographic map obtained using the modified Beer-Lambert law and interpolation is given

High-Density Diffuse Optical Imaging of Total Hemoglobin Changes to Emotionally Valenced Speech in Two-Month Old Infants

We used emotional speech to elicit brain activity in two-month-old infants and recorded emotion-modulated total hemoglobin changes on the frontotemporal cortex using diffuse optical imaging with a multi-distance source-detector array.