Cerebral motor control in patients with gliomas around the central sulcus studied with spatially filtered magnetoencephalography

Abstract

Objective: Application of spatially filtered magnetoencephalography (MEG) to investigate changes in the mechanism of cerebral motor control in patients with tumours around the central sulcus.

Methods: MEG records were made during a repetitive hand grasping task in six patients with gliomas around the central sulcus and in four control subjects. Power decreases in the alpha (8-13 Hz), beta (13-30 Hz), and low gamma bands (30-50 Hz) during the motor tasks (event related desynchronisation, ERD) were analysed statistically with synthetic aperture magnetometry. The tomography of ERD was superimposed on the individual's magnetic resonance image.

Results: beta ERD was consistently localised to the contralateral primary sensorimotor cortex (MI/SI) in control subjects, whereas the alpha and low gamma ERD showed considerable intersubject variability. beta ERD in patients during non-affected side hand movement was also localised to the contralateral MI/SI, but exclusively to the ipsilateral hemisphere during affected side hand movement.

Conclusions: The altered pattern of ERD in the patient group during affected side hand movement suggests recruitment of diverse motor areas, especially the ipsilateral MI/SI, which may be required for the effective movement of the affected hand.