Exploring brain activation during a buttoning task in adults: A functional near infrared spectroscopy investigation

The ability to complete activities of daily living (ADLs) is an important part of daily life and can promote well-being and independence. There is currently limited knowledge of brain activity during ADLs (e.g. dressing tasks). Previous studies explored brain activity during dressing using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI); however, the supine position during fMRI is not a natural dressing posture and may impact findings. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a promising method of data collection as it can investigate brain activity in a natural state (sitting) during dressing. In this study, to understand brain activity during buttoning in unimpaired adults, twenty participants (25-65 years) completed an upper extremity task of buttoning in three 20 s repetitions with 15 s rest in between each activity block. Brain activation patterns were recorded using fNIRS over the prefrontal, premotor, supplementary motor, sensorimotor, and posterior parietal cortices. Compared to the resting period, significantly higher activation during the activity block was observed in all recorded regions but the posterior parietal cortex. Understanding brain activity in unimpaired adults during the performance of activities of daily living is a critical first-step for investigating brain activation in different clinical populations.