Interhemispheric connectivity revealed by diffusion tensor imaging fiber tracking derived from navigated transcranial magnetic stimulation maps as a sign of language function at risk in patients with brain tumors

摘要

OBJECTIVE Resection of brain tumors in language-eloquent areas entails the risk of postoperative aphasia. It has been demonstrated via navigated transcranial magnetic stimulation (nTMS) that language function can partially shift to the unaffected hemisphere due to tumor-induced plasticity. Therefore, this study was designed to evaluate whether interhemispheric connectivity (IC) detected by nTMS-based diffusion tensor imaging fiber tracking (DTI-FT) can be used to predict surgery-related aphasia in patients with brain tumors.