Wolfgang Gaggl1,2, Brian Harris Kopell3,
Christopher R. Butson3,4, Rey R. Ramirez4, Sylvain
Baillet2,4, Klaus Driesslein4, Gang Chen2,
Shi-Jiang Li2
1Radiology, Medical College
of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, United States; 2Biophysics, Medical
College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, United States; 3Neurosurgery,
Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, United States; 4Neurology,
Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, United States
Tinnitus affects over 40 millions of Americans with approximately 2 millions having problems functioning in day-to-day life. Epidural cortical stimulation can reduce the symptoms but outcomes vary greatly across patients and depend on finding biomarkers that predict its effectiveness and optimizing the implant location. We studied cortical connections between auditory and limbic networks using DTI tractography and characterized diffusion metrics at the target site with respect to behavioral stimulation effectiveness. Our results indicate that connections to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex play a role in modulating treatment effectiveness and also the mean diffusivity at the electrode site correlated significantly with effectiveness.
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