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Jerome,

It is possible, but there are difficulties, as there are in other modalities including fMRI. For MEG, there are the following factors (not an exhaustive list) to consider:

1. Different numbers of sensors and geometry of their configuration (planar, axial, etc). Probably, it would be unwise to try for a sensor level analysis, but source level statistics might be reasonable.
2. Different sampling rates. I know for example that the CTF and 4D systems do not have any sampling rates in common, although there are similar rates within a given acquisition bandwidth. You'd probably have to resample the data into a common sampling rate for certain types of analyses.
3. Vendor specific noise-reduction strategies differ between the Neuromag, CTF and 4D systems (maybe also Yokogawa) and each has implications for source analysis.

Barring these types of MEG specific factors, many of the issues are the same as for combining across multiple sites for MRI studies. Consortia like the fBIRN (http://www.na-mic.org/Wiki/index.php/FBIRN:Main_Page) have gone a long way towards protocol standardization and much of what they have to say on their website with respect to running phantoms, standardizing stimulus protocols, etc., applies to multi-site MEG as well. Also, you could look at the following paper:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18044636

Best,

Don

On Jan 12, 2012, at 9:17 AM, Jerome Courtemanche wrote:

> Hi,
> 
>   Is it possible to use data collected by different MEG scanners into one single analysis?
> 
> Best wishes,
> 
> Jerome

-----------------------
Don Rojas, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Psychiatry
U. of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus
Director, UCD Magnetoencephalography Lab
13001 E. 17th Pl F546
Aurora, CO 80045
303-724-4994