brain scanning Flashcards
What are the brain scanning techniques?
CAT scans (computerised axial tomography)
PET scans (positron emission tomography)
fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging)
What is a CAT scan?
What are the strengths for a CAT scan?
CAT scans are useful for revealing abnormal structure in the brain such as tumours or structural damage. The quality of the images provided by CAT scans is much higher than traditional x-rays
Quick to conduct
Help surgeons better planner procedure before surgery takes place by being able to accurately see the layout of the brain structures - may make the procedure faster and more efficient
What are the weaknesses for a CAT scan?
CAT scans require more radiation the traditional x-rays, and the more detailed and complex the CAT scan is, the more radiation exposure the patient receives. This means that CAT scans can’t often be used.
CAT scans only provides structural information. Unlike other scans such as PET scans they do not give information about activity on the live brain they just produced still images. This means they have limited use and research linking brain areas to particular behaviours
What is a PET Scan?
What are the strengths of a PET scan?
Pet scans show the brain in action, which is useful for psychological research as biological activity can be linked to behaviour
Pet scans indicate the specific areas of the brain that are involved in experience I do a localisation of function
What are the weaknesses of a PET scan?
Sometimes the results are not easy to interpret E.G pat scans on people doing the same task have shown different brain activity and different people. This makes it difficult to draw conclusions about which brain areas are linked to which behaviour
The precise location of active brain areas in relation to brain structure is difficult to pinpoint
Expensive to use
What is an fMRI scan?
What are the strengths of an fMRI scan?
As with pet scans, FMRI shows important information about which areas of the brain are being used at one time
Non-invasive and do not involve injections
The images produced by FMRI are extremely clear and can show brain activity to the millimetre
What are the weaknesses of an fMRI scan?
Expensive to use
The technology is only effective as the person whose brain investigated stays perfectly still and this may be a problem for some people E.G children. This limits the use of FMRI.
There is around a five second timeline between brain activity in the image of pain on the screen which can cause problems when trying to interpret the information received
Because of the high-powered magnetic fields, some people are unable to have this kind of brain scan I.E people with a pacemaker or metal surgical implants
