AI Insight
This study directly compared wearable OPM-MEG technology with conventional cryogenic SQUID-MEG by measuring auditory and somatosensory brain responses in 18 participants aged 10-45 years using both systems on the same individuals. Both technologies successfully localized the same cortical sources with matching timing, though small predictable spatial offsets were observed due to differences in sensor geometry rather than measurement error. Importantly, age-related developmental patterns in brain responses were preserved across both systems, demonstrating that the technologies yield equivalent neurophysiological conclusions.
Why it matters
OPM-MEG offers practical advantages including wearability, reduced cost, and better accommodation of diverse head sizes, making brain imaging more accessible for pediatric populations and individuals who cannot use traditional fixed-helmet systems. This validation supports adopting OPM-MEG as an equivalent alternative to conventional MEG for clinical and research applications in sensory brain mapping.
⚠️ Preprint – Noch nicht peer-reviewed
Dieser Artikel wurde noch nicht von unabhängigen Experten begutachtet. Die Ergebnisse sind vorläufig und sollten mit Vorsicht interpretiert werden.
Wearable optically pumped magnetometer magnetoencephalography (OPM-MEG) reduces sensor-to-cortex distance compared with conventional cryogenic SQUID-MEG, but whether the two technologies yield equivalent neurophysiological conclusions remains unclear. We recorded auditory and somatosensory evoked fields in 18 participants (10-45 years) using a 128-sensor FieldLine HEDscan OPM-MEG system and a 275-channel CTF SQUID-MEG system within the same individuals. Equivalent current dipole source models were estimated using identical preprocessing and modeling procedures and compared using paired permutation testing. Both systems localized canonical auditory and somatosensory cortical generators with matched peak latencies and modest cross-system spatial differences. Auditory sources showed a consistent medial bias in SQUID-MEG localization, whereas somatosensory sources exhibited a small systematic offset (~4 mm), indicating stable coordinate differences rather than localization error. Dipole moments were larger for SQUID-MEG and goodness-of-fit higher for OPM-MEG; however, the increased moment was explained by a medial localization bias, demonstrating inverse-model effects rather than physiological disagreement. Auditory dipole moment increased with age in both systems, whereas somatosensory responses showed no age-related change. Together, these observations indicate preserved developmental physiology across platforms. These findings demonstrate that OPM-MEG and SQUID-MEG recover the same cortical generators and support equivalent biological interpretations despite predictable geometry-dependent coordinate differences. OPM-MEG therefore represents a measurement-equivalent implementation of MEG suitable for sensory functional mapping.