What is it about?

We present our views on best practices for designing, performing and analyzing data from brain MRI research studies in Tourette syndrome, and point out that similar issues arise in many other research studies involving children or neuropsychiatric illnesses.

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Why is it important?

We do neuroimaging research on Tourette Syndrome. We also review others' work for scientific journals and for NIH, and similarly they judge our work, all with serious implications for science (and, of course, for our careers). Over time, we have developed some strong opinions (and some data) about the importance of the clinical and technical choices one makes in study design and analysis. We are concerned that some such choices have become common in the field, yet may seriously interfere with the goal of producing high-quality, meaningful research.

Perspectives

I feel this article exemplifies the benefits of a cordial and fruitful collaboration among colleagues with different backgrounds: cognitive neuroscience, psychiatry, and neurology. We each provided different perspectives on important issues, yet were able to agree on the main points presented here. Dr. Greene additionally provided superb writing skills and project management. The article was also improved in response to thoughtful critiques by the reviewers.

Dr Kevin J. Black
Washington University in St. Louis

Read the Original

This page is a summary of: Considerations for MRI study design and implementation in pediatric and clinical populations, Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, April 2016, Elsevier,
DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2015.12.005.
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