Determination of language dominance using functional MRI: a comparison with the Wada test. Neurology 1996 Apr;46(4):978-84
Date
04/01/1996Pubmed ID
8780076DOI
10.1212/wnl.46.4.978Scopus ID
2-s2.0-9244251029 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 797 CitationsAbstract
We performed functional MRI (FMRI) in 22 consecutive epilepsy patients undergoing intracarotid amobarbital (Wada) testing and compared language lateralization measures obtained with the two procedures. FMRI used a single-word semantic decision task previously shown to activate lateralized language areas in normal adults. Correlation between the two tests was highly significant (r = 0.96; 95% CIs 0.90 to 0.98; p < 0.0001). These results validate the FMRI technique and suggest that "active" areas observed with this semantic processing task correspond to those underlying hemispheric dominance for language. This strong correlation observed supports the view that language lateralization is a continuous rather than a dichotomous variable. In addition to lateralization information, FMRI consistently demonstrated focal regions of activity in lateral frontal and temporo-parieto-occipital cortex. These functional maps may be helpful in defining the boundaries of surgical excisions.
Author List
Binder JR, Swanson SJ, Hammeke TA, Morris GL, Mueller WM, Fischer M, Benbadis S, Frost JA, Rao SM, Haughton VMAuthors
Jeffrey R. Binder MD Professor in the Neurology department at Medical College of WisconsinWade M. Mueller MD Professor in the Neurosurgery department at Medical College of Wisconsin
Sara J. Swanson PhD Chief, Professor in the Neurology department at Medical College of Wisconsin
MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
AdolescentAdult
Dominance, Cerebral
Female
Humans
Language
Language Tests
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Male
Memory
Middle Aged
