LOCALIZATION OF LANGUAGE CORTICES BY FUNCTIONAL MR-IMAGING COMPARED WITH INTRACAROTID AMOBARBITAL HEMISPHERIC SEDATION

OBJECTIVE. We undertook this study to investigate functional MR imagin g as a new clinical method for determining hemispheric language domina nce. Seven patients undergoing surgical evaluation for chronic intract able epilepsy were studied, Intracarotid amobarbital injection was als o performed and the findings compared with the functional MR imaging r esults. CONCLUSION. Functional MR imaging studies enabled localization of the frontal and temporal lobe language cortices. The results of fu nctional MR imaging and intracarotid amobarbital testing of hemispheri c language dominance agreed in all seven patients, including two right -handed patients with right-hemisphere language dominance. These preli minary results show that functional MR imaging is an accurate noninvas ive method of determining language dominance that may replace the amob arbital test for some purposes if confirmed by additional research.