SPM has been widely applied for comparison studies of the functional image data among groups of patients or individuals under different conditions and these images are from people ranging from children to adults. However, the analysis of children's brain images by using SPM can make children's brain images normalized to an adult's template image and this can result in some errors. So this study created the children's mean MR images based on the Magnetic Resonance Images of 36 normal children (age: 2∼6, average age: 4.36, SD age: 1.41, M/F: 17/19), and the children's mean SPECT images by using SPECT images of 13 normal children (age: 2∼6, average age: 4.80, SD age: 1.17, M/F: 10/3). We created the Korean children's brain template image, based on those mean images, and then we compared between the positions of the clusters, based on the blood flow, by normalizing ADHD children's SPECT image to Korean children's template image and SPM adult's template image. As a result of the analysis, the variation of the cluster positions was found to be a maximum of 25 mm. Therefore, we should be aware that we need to consider the template image and the p-value when we analyze the children's brain image by using SPM.

KeywordsStatistical parametric mapping, SPM2, Template image, Cluster, SPECT