An unified approach for fMRI-measurements used by a new real-time fMRI analysis system

Abstract

Real-time functional MRI (rfMRI) offers new experimental paradigms, such as biofeedback and interactive experiments. Usually, several separated software systems are used to control the MRI measuring sequence, the stimulus presentation, and the statistical analysis, which leads to problems concerning the user communication and synchronisation and interaction of the different software systems. Here, an approach is developed which helps to overcome those difficulties by utilising a uniform parameter management using a flexible parameter description that can be used simultaneously by different separated software systems. This approach is used to control two modules: a realtime fMRI application which extracts the current activation, and an analysis-system which evaluates the current brain activation to influence the stimulus presentation and provide feedback to the volunteer.