The MEG topography and the source model of abnormal neural activities associated with brain lesions

A source model is proposed to simulate spatial distributions of abnormal MEG and EEG activities generated by abnormal neural activities such as the delta activity associated with brain tumors. Brain tumor itself is electrically silent and the spherical shell around the tumor might generate abnormal neural activities. The sources of these neural activities are represented by combinations of multiple current dipoles. The head is assumed to be a spherical volume conductor. Electrical potentials and magnetic fields over the surface of the sphere are calculated. The computer simulation shows that the MEG topography and EEG topography vary variously with combinations of location and orientation of the dipoles. In a special case, however, that the dipoles orient in the same direction or orient radially, the spatial patterns of the MEGs and EEGs generated by numerous dipoles are analogous to those generated by single dipoles.