MAGNETOENCEPHALOGRAPHY IN NORMAL AND GROWTH RETARDED FETUSES
Abstract number :
3.144
Submission category :
Year :
2005
Submission ID :
5950
Source :
www.aesnet.org
Presentation date :
12/3/2005 12:00:00 AM
Published date :
Dec 2, 2005, 06:00 AM
Authors :
1Hari Eswaran, 1Pam Murphy, 1Hubert Preissl, 2Naim Haddad, 2Bashir Shihabuddin, and 1Curtis Lowery
To date, we lack the capability to assess fetal brain function in utero. In this study, we attempt to compare magnetic cerebral activity recorded from fetuses in normal and growth retarded pregnancies. The study population included 29 fetuses; 24 are healthy with the remaining five diagnosed with intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR). The gestational age ranged from 28 to 39 weeks. Magnetoencephalography (MEG) recordings were performed using the SARA (SQUID Array for Reproductive Assessment) system[apos]s 151 magnetic sensors arranged in a concave array matched to the shape of the gravid abdomen. The mother simply sits and leans forward against the surface of the sensor array. Interfering maternal and fetal heart signals were removed through a spatial filter algorithm. The remaining signals were examined in the frequency band 0.5 to 10 Hz. This band width was divided into 10 equally spaced intervals, and spectral analysis was performed to obtain the average power in each frequency interval. MEG was succesfully recorded from all the fetuses. The average spectral power was maximal in the 0.5 to 2 Hz frequency band in all recordings. Average MEG power in this frequency interval for IUGR and normal fetuses is 69337 femto Tesla (fT) and 33283 fT respectively. This difference is highly significant (p[lt]0.001). The MEG power is higher in IUGR compared to normal fetuses at low frequencies. MEG may prove to be a useful tool in the assessment of fetal brain function. (Supported by NIH grant 5R01NS036277.)