Combined lesion-deficit and fMRI approaches in single-case studies: unique contributions to cognitive neuroscience

• Published in: Current opinion in behavioral sciences Vol. 40; pp. 58 - 63
• Main Authors: Deifelt Streese, Carolina, Tranel, Daniel
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier Ltd 01.08.2021
• Subjects: lesion method; fmri; case studies
• ISSN: 2352-1546; 2352-1554
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2021.01.004

•The number of published neuroscience papers on single-case studies is declining.•Combining lesion-deficit case studies and functional imaging yields valuable insights.•These insights go beyond those obtained by lesion-deficit or functional imaging alone. Although lesion-deficit case studies are foundational in cognitive neuroscience, published papers presenting single lesion cases are declining. In this review, we argue that there is a valuable place for single-case lesion-deficit research, especially when combined with functional neuroimaging methods, such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). To support this, we present a summary of notable findings from single-case combined lesion-deficit and fMRI studies published in recent years (2017–2020). These studies show the unique value that this combined approach brings to the understanding of complex functions, brain-level connectivity, and plasticity and recovery. We encourage researchers to consider combining lesion-deficit and functional imaging methods in the analysis of single cases, as this approach affords unique opportunities to address challenging unanswered questions about brain–behavior relationships.