Determination of hemispheric language dominance using functional magnetic resonance imaging and the Shiritori (Japanese word chain) task in patients with epilepsy: Comparison with the Wada test

摘要

Purpose: The Wada test has been the gold standard for determining hemispheric language dominance (HLD) in the presurgical evaluation of patients scheduled for neurosurgical procedures. As it poses inherent risks associated with intra-arterial catheter techniques and as it occasionally fails to indicate language dominance, an alternative reliable test is needed. We quantitatively assessed the results of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) using the Shiritori task, a Japanese word chain, to identify the threshold for correctly predicting HLD.