title: Comparison of a layered slab and an atlas head model for Monte Carlo fitting of time-domain near-infrared spectroscopy data of the adult head.
abstract: Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) estimations of the adult brain baseline optical properties based on a homogeneous model of the head are known to introduce significant contamination from extracerebral layers. More complex models have been proposed and occasionally applied to in vivo data, but their performances have never been characterized on realistic head structures. Here we implement a flexible fitting routine of time-domain NIRS data using graphics processing unit based Monte Carlo simulations. We compare the results for two different geometries: a two-layer slab with variable thickness of the first layer and a template atlas head registered to the subject's head surface. We characterize the performance of the Monte Carlo approaches for fitting the optical properties from simulated time-resolved data of the adult head. We show that both geometries provide better results than the commonly used homogeneous model, and we quantify the improvement in terms of accuracy, linearity, and cross-talk from extracerebral layers.
authors.forename: Juliette
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Selb
authors.forename: Tyler M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Ogden
authors.forename: Jay
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dubb
authors.forename: Qianqian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Fang
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Boas
mesh_terms: D000042:Absorption; D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology*; D003198:Computer Simulation; D006257:Head; D006801:Humans; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008953:Models, Anatomic; D009010:Monte Carlo Method; D055095:Optics and Photonics; D019047:Phantoms, Imaging; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D019265:Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared / Q000379:methods*