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Scientists in Scotland have developed a method to shine light through the human head to scan the brain. It may lead to cheaper and portable tools for deep brain imaging, offering hope for future diagnosis and care.
Scientists from the University of Glasgow in Scotland have developed a new way to scan the brain. It uses near-infrared light that can pass through a person’s entire head, from one side to the other. The breakthrough could help create smaller, cheaper and portable devices to look deep into the brain without surgery.
A new way to see deep inside the brain
Today, doctors use a method called fNIRS (functional near-infrared spectroscopy) to scan the brain. It is low-cost and portable, but it can only look a few centimeters deep. To go deeper, doctors need large, expensive machines like MRI scanners. The new method improves fNIRS to reach further inside the brain.
How the new method works
The researchers used stronger but still safe laser light and improved sensors to collect the light. Only a small amount of light made it through the head, but it was enough to show it could work. They tested this on eight people. It only worked on one: a man with fair skin and no hair. But that one success proved it’s possible.
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What they learned from the test
The team also used 3D computer models of human heads to predict how the light would travel. The results from the test matched their computer model. This showed their method was reliable. They found that light follows special paths through the head, especially through clearer areas like those filled with cerebrospinal fluid. This could help target future scans better.
Not ready for everyday use, yet
This method needs special setups and a long scanning time of around 30 minutes. It’s not yet useful in daily medical practice. But the team says that proving it can work is a big step. They believe future versions could be faster and work on more people.
What this means for brain health
This research opens the door to cheaper and more available brain scans. In the future, it could help with detecting strokes, brain injuries, and tumors. It could also be used to study the brain in children and older adults. Right now, many of these tests are expensive and hard to get. A smaller and more portable system could help millions of people.
The researchers say that optical imaging methods like this can help bridge the gap between cheap, basic tests like EEG and costly ones like fMRI. Though still in the early stages, this new light-based method might change how we look inside the brain in years to come.
