Imaging the brain during coughing: a unique PET study of cough

COEX 

Coughing is known as a defensive reflex that protects the airways from harmful substances. Clinically, the cough reflex may be impaired by stroke While brain activity during cough was previously examined by functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) with model analysis, this method does not capture the actual brain activity during coughing. To obtain accurate measurements of brain activity during coughing, we use an unrestrained positron emission tomography (PET) system with head motion correction to correct for head motion while a whole-brain scan was performed during a coughing task.