Simultaneous sampling of event-related BOLD responses in auditory cortex and brainstem

Event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was applied to investigate blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) responses in the human auditory system. Auditory fMRI is hindered by the disturbing acoustical noise of echo planar imaging (EPI). A sparse acquisition technique was used in which the delayed hemodynamic response was imaged at discrete sampling time-points after a brief auditory stimulus. Long repetition times (10 heartbeats (HBs)) were used to avoid interactions between the activation due to the sound stimulation and scanner noise. In addition, only a single slice was acquired, to ensure that the scanner noise was minimal in duration and intensity. The image acquisition was triggered by the HB to prevent artifacts from cardiac-related brainstem motion. An image was acquired every 10th HB. Significant hemodynamic BOLD time-course responses were measured from the primary and secondary auditory cortices, as well as the inferior colliculi in the brainstem. No systematic differences were found between the cerebral cortex and the brainstem in terms of activation amplitude or in onset time of the hemodynamic response. Apparently, the slow dynamic nature of the BOLD response signal is similar across spatially separated auditory brain regions, suggesting a corresponding design of vessels and capillaries. Magn Reson Med 47:90-96, 2002. (C) 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.