Influence of orientation and area of the extended cortical current source on the magnetoencephalography (MEG) inverse problem

Abstract

Purpose: In this paper, we investigated the influence of orientation and activation area of extended cortical current sources upon the solutions of magnetoencephalography (MEG) inverse problems. Methods: Extensive simulation studies were performed with artificial MEG datasets generated using a realistic head geometry model. Results: Our simulation studies demonstrated that as the source activation area was extended beyond a threshold level, the radial component of cortical sources was weakened and thus the accuracy of MEG inverse problem was enhanced. Conclusions: These are important findings suggesting that one may not need to be concerned too much about the insensitivity of MEG to radial sources in many practical MEG measurements. ? 2012 Korean Society of Medical and Biological Engineering and Springer.