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Brain Studies

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Submitted By kimzieann
Words 530
Pages 3
CheckPoint: Brain Studies
PSY/240
Teacher: Lorry J Bradley
Kimberly Roberts
10/12/2012

These are the five research methods that I chose out of our text:

1. Contrast X-Rays : Contrast x-rays involve injecting a substance into an area of the body that absorbs x-rays around the surrounding tissue. The injected substance shows the contrast between the compartment and surrounding tissue during an x-ray photograph. Cerebral Angiography is the process that uses radio opaque dye into a cerebral artery that shows the cerebral circulatory system. Contrast X-rays are beneficial to understanding mental health issues because they could find location of tumors that might cause mental abnormalities in a patient. 2. Positron Emission Tomography: Also known as PET, this type of study was the first brain imaging technique that provided images of the brain and its activity rather than just straight faced images. 2-DG is injected into the patient and if the patient is doing an activity while taking this scan, bin about 30 seconds after the injection, the scan will show the brain level that most active. This can be beneficial because it can show if parts of the brain are reacting normally or abnormally to exposures to certain activities and stimulus. 3. Muscle Tension: Muscle Tension would be considered a Biofeedback. This is a method that uses the mind to control a body function that the body regulates automatically. (1) Electromyography is the normal procedure for measuring muscle tension. The results are called a EMG and most psychphysiologists usually do not work with the raw EMG signals and that they change them to a more understandable form. An example of how muscle tension can beneficial to mental health diagnosis is that muscle tension can be a sign of GAD General Anxiety Disorder. (2) 4. Functional MRI: These create images that represent the increase in oxygen flow in the blood to activate areas of the brain. Functional MRI’s have at least four advantages over a PET: 1. There are no injections to the patient. 2. It shows both structural and functional information in the same image. 3. The resolution is better. 4. It can be used to produce three-dimensional images of the entire brain. Function MRI’s are very beneficial to help understanding certain mental health issues. They can help diagnose mental health disorders such as ADHD and many others.(3) 5. Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS): This technique is creating by affecting the activity in the area of the cortex by creating a magnetic field under a coil positioned next to the skill. The magnetic stimulation temporarily turns off part of the brain while it causes disruption on cognition and behavior are asses. According to the Mayo Clinic, TMS is beneficial to mental health treatment because it can stimulate nerve cells in the brain to improve symptoms of depression. (4)

References: 1. http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/biofeedback-20743 2. http://www.ohsu.edu/xd/about/news_events/news/2009/ohsuresearcherstudyidlingbrain.cfm 3. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/transcranial-magnetic-stimulation/MY00185/METHOD=print 4. Biopsychology, Eighth Edition, by John P.J. Pinel. Published by Allyn & Bacon. Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.

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