Functional MRI (fMRI) can detect changes in blood oxygenation and blood flow that occur in response to activity in the brain. Naznin Virji-Babul of the University of British Columbia works mainly with kids and teens who have suffered concussions. “Using both fMRI and DTI, we can see changes in structure and function,” she says.
Virji-Babul also uses high-density electroencephalography. “EEGs are going to be good for diagnostics,” she says. “An MRI costs $500. EEGs have minimal cost, and you can see disruptions in the functional connectivity of the brain.” And researchers are beginning to use positron emission tomography to look at chemical and metabolic processes in the brain after concussion.
A major problem in concussion research, says Virji-Babul, “is that there is no way to say that a [given] person has never had a concussion.” The overall aims are to link genetics, brain injury, and recovery and to correlate changes in the brain with behavioral changes.