Experimental analysis of distortion of magnetoencephalography signals by the skull.
OBJECTIVE
Magnetoencephalography (MEG) signals are, on theoretical grounds, thought to be relatively undistorted by the skull in contrast to electroencephalographic (EEG) signals. This assumption was experimentally tested in an animal preparation with a brain similar to the human brain in many respects.


METHODS
Possible skull effects on MEG were evaluated directly using an in vivo porcine preparation, by measuring the somatic evoked magnetic field (SEF) above the skull with and without the skull under, otherwise, the same condition.


RESULTS
The SEF was virtually undistorted by the skull with no obvious visible change in its waveform and amplitude under these two conditions. However, there was some small, but significant attenuation when the skull was removed, the distortion being greater for deeper sources.


CONCLUSIONS
Our results are consistent with a theoretical expectation that the skull should be virtually 'transparent' to the magnetic fields for shallow sources, but less so for fields generated by deeper sources.
Okada
Y C
YC
Department of Neurology, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque 87131, USA. okada@unm.edu
Lahteenmäki
A
A
Xu
C
C
D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D005071:Evoked Potentials; D015225:Magnetoencephalography; D009666:Nose / Q000502:physiology; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D012886:Skull / Q000502:physiology*; D013552:Swine