The researchers hope that, upon further development, the technology will assist in comparing brain function across populations to assess childhood development during the aging process. For instance, a percentile scale could be developed to gauge brain development much in the way weight and height percentiles are calculated for growing children. Such a tool could highlight individual needs and lead to specific ways of helping individual children.

In the future, this form of analysis may also play a key role in diagnosing childhood developmental delay, ADHD and autism.

"In many cases it can be vey hard to diagnose and properly characterize these problems, which is why we are so encouraged by these findings," added Fair.

Source: Oregon Health & Science University