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Structural and functional imaging techniques were combined to investigate sensory system function in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Functional MRI (fMRI) was used to investigate cortical activity during visual, auditory and somatosensory stimulation in 14 ALS patients and 18 control subjects. Changes in amplitude, latency and duration of the blood oxygen level dependent response were modelled. Furthermore, diffusion tensor imaging was used to investigate changes in white matter networks.

During visual stimulation, fMRI demonstrated a decreased response in secondary visual areas in ALS, possibly related to demyelination of sensory nerve fibres. Increasing brain activity in associative cortices was linked to a decrease in physical functioning and might represent a compensatory process. Additionally, reduced white matter functioning became evident for fibres projecting to the …