title: fNIRS-based investigation of the Stroop task after TBI.
abstract: To evaluate neural changes during a Stroop task among individuals with TBI using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Thirteen healthy controls and 14 patients with moderate to severe TBI were included in this study. Oxygenated hemoglobin (HbO) was recorded every tenth of a second using a 52-channel fNIRS unit. Data were acquired using a block design during a Stroop task (i.e., Condition A = Dot Color Naming, Condition B = Incongruent Condition). Visual stimuli were presented on a computer monitor. Behaviorally, response accuracy was similar between groups for condition A, but the TBI group made more errors than the control group during condition B. During condition A, the patient group demonstrated significant increases in HbO within bilateral frontal regions compared to controls (p < 0.01). When examining the Stroop interference effect (B-A), controls showed increased HbO in bilateral frontal lobes and left inferior parietal region suggesting increased neural response to increased cognitive demand, whereas no differences were detected among the TBI group (p < 0.05). No between group differences in latency of HbO response was observed during either condition. While the TBI group performed as accurately as controls on the simpler dot color naming condition of the Stroop task, neural activity was greater within the frontal lobes during this relatively simple task among the TBI group suggesting neural inefficiency. Furthermore, the spatial distribution of neural activity related to the interference effect was not different among patients, suggesting the neural demand for the simpler task was comparable to that of the more cognitive demanding task among the TBI sample. The results suggest that fNIRS can identify frontal lobe inefficiency in TBI commonly observed with fMRI.
authors.affiliation: Pate Rehabilitation, 2655 Villa Creek Dr., Suite 140, Dallas, TX, 75234, USA. pplenger@paterehab.com.|Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd., Dallas, TX, 75390, USA. pplenger@paterehab.com.
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Plenger
authors.affiliation: Pate Rehabilitation, 2655 Villa Creek Dr., Suite 140, Dallas, TX, 75234, USA.|Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd., Dallas, TX, 75390, USA.
authors.forename: Kamini
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Krishnan
authors.affiliation: Pate Rehabilitation, 2655 Villa Creek Dr., Suite 140, Dallas, TX, 75234, USA.
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cloud
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd., Dallas, TX, 75390, USA.|Center for BrainHealth, University of Texas at Dallas, 2200 W. Mockingbird Ln., Dallas, TX, 75235, USA.
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bosworth
authors.affiliation: Pate Rehabilitation, 2655 Villa Creek Dr., Suite 140, Dallas, TX, 75234, USA.
authors.forename: Devin
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Qualls
authors.affiliation: Pate Rehabilitation, 2655 Villa Creek Dr., Suite 140, Dallas, TX, 75234, USA.|Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd., Dallas, TX, 75390, USA.|Center for BrainHealth, University of Texas at Dallas, 2200 W. Mockingbird Ln., Dallas, TX, 75235, USA.
authors.forename: Carlos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Marquez de la Plata
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D000070642:Brain Injuries, Traumatic / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001931:Brain Mapping / Q000379:methods; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D059907:Functional Neuroimaging / Q000379:methods; D006454:Hemoglobins / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010100:Oxygen / Q000032:analysis / Q000097:blood / Q000502:physiology*; D062211:Spatio-Temporal Analysis; D019265:Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared / Q000379:methods; D057190:Stroop Test
chemical_list: D006454:Hemoglobins; D010100:Oxygen
keywords: Frontal lobe; HbO; Interference effect; Stroop; TBI; fNIRS