ABSTRACT
Advances in neuroimaging make it possible to non-invasively detect and measure brain activity and neurochemistry in vivo in children. Although pediatric functional neuroimaging research presents both practical and ethical challenges, the knowledge gained from this type of research has enormous potential for informing the detection, prevention, and treatment of childhood-onset disorders. Functional neuroimaging holds promise not only for pediatric illnesses but also for the understanding of adult-onset disorders, whose geneses lie in early development. Nuclear medicine imaging techniques [i.e. positron emission tomography (PET) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT)], functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) are the main tools used for this research. Alternatives such as optical imaging and magnetic electroencephalography (MEG) have not been exploited systematically in pediatric research. A comprehensive review of functional neuroimaging in child psychiatry, including research through 2000, is available in an edited volume by Ernst and Rumsey.1 The current chapter describes the most upto-date findings in child neuroimaging studies with specific reference to psychiatric childhood disorders.
