title: An online database of infant functional near infrared spectroscopy studies: a community-augmented systematic review.
abstract: Until recently, imaging the infant brain was very challenging. Functional Near InfraRed Spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a promising, relatively novel technique, whose use is rapidly expanding. As an emergent field, it is particularly important to share methodological knowledge to ensure replicable and robust results. In this paper, we present a community-augmented database which will facilitate precisely this exchange. We tabulated articles and theses reporting empirical fNIRS research carried out on infants below three years of age along several methodological variables. The resulting spreadsheet has been uploaded in a format allowing individuals to continue adding new results, and download the most recent version of the table. Thus, this database is ideal to carry out systematic reviews. We illustrate its academic utility by focusing on the factors affecting three key variables: infant attrition, the reliability of oxygenated and deoxygenated responses, and signal-to-noise ratios. We then discuss strengths and weaknesses of the DBIfNIRS, and conclude by suggesting a set of simple guidelines aimed to facilitate methodological convergence through the standardization of reports.
authors.affiliation: Neurobiology of Language, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands. alecristia@gmail.com
authors.forename: Alejandrina
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cristia
authors.forename: Emmanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dupoux
authors.forename: Yoko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hakuno
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lloyd-Fox
authors.forename: Manuela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schuetze
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kivits
authors.forename: Tomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Bergvelt
authors.forename: Marjolijn
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: van Gelder
authors.forename: Luca
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Filippin
authors.forename: Sylvain
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Charron
authors.forename: Yasuyo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Minagawa-Kawai
mesh_terms: D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D016208:Databases, Factual; D059907:Functional Neuroimaging; D006454:Hemoglobins / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D020407:Internet; D010101:Oxygen Consumption; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D059629:Signal-To-Noise Ratio; D019265:Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared
chemical_list: D006454:Hemoglobins
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