Pneumatical-Mechanical Tactile Stimulation Device for Somatotopic Mapping of Body Surface During fMRI

Shikui Jia; Luyao Wang; Heng Wang; Xiaoyu Lv; Jinglong Wu; Tianyi Yan; Chunlin Li; Baomin Hu

doi:10.1002/jmri.27144

Pneumatical-Mechanical Tactile Stimulation Device for Somatotopic Mapping of Body Surface During fMRI

J Magn Reson Imaging. 2020 Oct;52(4):1093-1101. doi: 10.1002/jmri.27144. Epub 2020 May 2.

Authors

Shikui Jia¹, Luyao Wang¹, Heng Wang¹, Xiaoyu Lv¹, Jinglong Wu¹, Tianyi Yan², Chunlin Li³, Baomin Hu⁴

Affiliations

¹ Intelligent Robotics Institute, School of Mechatronical Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China.
² School of Life Science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China.
³ School of Biomedical Engineering, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
⁴ Beijing Chao-yang Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.

PMID: 32359119
DOI: 10.1002/jmri.27144

Abstract

Background: There is a need for devices that allow reproducible stimulation of skin areas of humans for investigating somatosensory mapping of the whole-body surface. However, their design is not simple, due to the magnetic field of MRI scanners.

Purpose: To accurately characterize the mapping of somatosensory presentation of the whole-body surface of subjects during functional (f)MRI scans.

Study type: Prospective.

Population: A water phantom and six healthy participants (age 23-27 years; two males) were recruited for the fMRI experiment.

Field strength/sequence: T₁ -weighted magnetization-prepared rapid acquisition gradient-echo, T₂ *-weighted gradient echo sequence at 3T.

Assessment: The stimulation device for somatotopic mapping was composed of three units: an air-generating unit, a control unit, and an execution unit. The fMRI in response to tactile stimulation was measured to characterize somatotopic mapping of the right-side body consisting of hand, arm, and leg in six healthy subjects.

Statistical tests: Pared-samples t-test for the conditions in SII.

Results: The pneumatical-mechanical tactile stimulation offered a wide range of stimulation intensities (0-400 g) in each channel. The predetermined physical pressure was successfully reached within ~5 msec and returned to baseline within 5 msec after the end of stimulation. With this tactile device, the digressive rate of the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) (271.44 without the device, 269.68 with the device) was 0.65% in the magnetic field environment. For the fMRI experiment, the primary somatosensory activation contralateral to the stimulation site was detected in response to spatial task and attentive task.

Data conclusion: This stimulation device characterized the mapping of somatosensory representation of the whole-body surface in individual participants during fMRI scans.

Level of evidence: 2.

Technical efficacy stage: 1. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2020;52:1093-1101.

Keywords: device; fMRI; pneumatical-mechanical; somatosensory mapping; tactile stimulation.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adult
Brain Mapping*
Humans
Magnetic Resonance Imaging*
Male
Physical Stimulation
Prospective Studies
Somatosensory Cortex
Young Adult