TMS-EEG Cortical Mapping for Hidden Brain Injury Dysfunction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for diagnosing and treating focal brain lesions like stroke and traumatic brain injury are limited by a lack of understanding of the widespread functional alterations in cortical areas beyond the injury site, which are critical for effective neuromodulation and pharmacological interventions.
Innovation Solution
A non-invasive apparatus using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and electroencephalographic sensors to map cortical bistability around brain lesions by scanning and measuring neuronal responses to localized stimulation, providing a 3-D map of cortical function.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If physicians diagnose and treat focal brain lesions as if caused merely by local dysfunction, then treatment is simplified and focused on the injury site, but widespread functional alterations in cortical areas extending beyond the injury site are missed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the assessment into two distinct components: (1) evaluation of the primary focal lesion site, and (2) separate evaluation of perilesional and remote cortical areas through TMS-EEG mapping. This segmentation allows clinicians to address both the obvious local damage and the hidden widespread functional alterations without conflating the two assessment processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces TMS-EEG mapping as an intermediary tool that bridges the gap between simple clinical examination and comprehensive brain function assessment. This intermediary technology enables detection of cortical bistability and network-level disruptions that would otherwise remain invisible, while maintaining a practical workflow that integrates with existing clinical practices.
2Reliability
If circuit-based neuromodulation and targeted pharmacological intervention are used to treat functional alterations, then treatment efficacy can be improved, but reliable understanding of neuronal alterations needing correction is currently lacking
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where TMS-EEG mapping provides objective quantitative data about cortical excitability and network connectivity. This feedback informs clinicians about the specific neuronal alterations present (such as cortical bistability patterns and effective connectivity disruptions), enabling them to select and adjust circuit-based neuromodulation and pharmacological treatments more precisely and effectively.
3Measurement precision
If TMS-EEG mapping is used to map cortical bistability around brain lesions, then assessment accuracy and identification of indirectly affected regions is improved, but device complexity and measurement procedures increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent leverages the universality of TMS and EEG technologies, which are already established clinical tools. By combining these two multi-functional technologies, the system can assess multiple aspects of brain function (cortical excitability, connectivity, bistability patterns) using equipment and procedures that are increasingly available in clinical settings, thereby reducing the barrier to implementation despite the enhanced measurement capabilities.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables a better assessment of brain injury by identifying indirectly affected regions and guiding targeted rehabilitation through a detailed mapping of cortical bistability, enhancing treatment efficacy.
Implementation Method 1
a neural stimulator for triggering a localized stimulation of neurons within the patient's brain at a set of different location and times using, for example, either electrical, magnetic, or ultrasonic stimulation
Implementation Method 2
an electroencephalographic sensor system collecting electrical signals from electrically active neurons within a patient's brain
Data Source
AI summary
An evaluation of suppressed neural function around the site of a brain lesion or injury is provided by repeated stimulations of the brain, for example, using transcranial magnetic stimulation, at different locations around the lesion and monitoring time and frequency domain characteristics of the resulting EEG signals to identify cortical bistability associated with functional loss that could subsequently be targeted for neural rehabilitation.