Moving it Forward: a Twenty-First Century Approach to Pediatric Neuropsychological Evaluation and the Importance of Integrating Neuroimaging Findings

In the twenty-first century, advanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques used in conjunction with a clinical radiological report and quantitative neuroimaging analysis software are changing the way in which neuroimaging findings of traumatic brain injury (TBI) can be integrated into a neuropsychological evaluation. This case study of a child who sustained a severe TBI illustrates how pediatric neuropsychologists can incorporate MRI and quantitative MRI analysis findings into their neuropsychological evaluations of children with TBI. It also shows how this multidimensional, technological approach enhances the neuropsychological understanding of how parenchymal damage from TBI relates to neurobehavioral and neurocognitive outcome in children. Lastly, this case study demonstrates how interpreting neuroimaging findings in a neuropsychological report is most highly relevant in terms of understanding how quantitative analyses can establish pathology in neurocognitive and/or neuroemotional neural networks of the brain.