Sex differences in invasive and noninvasive neurotechnologies

During the last decades, invasive and noninvasive neurotechnologies have become fundamental tools to study and modulate brain function. Together with other research and clinical methods, these technologies have contributed to the progress in our understanding of neurobiological mechanisms underlying cognitive processes in healthy subjects and patients suffering from neurological and mental disorders. Throughout this neurotechnology-driven path of discovery, a number of sex differences have been found in brain function and dysfunction, as well as in the therapeutic effect of neuromodulation. These sex differences identified through neurotechnologies are aligned with the strong clinical and epidemiological differences manifested between women and men in the prevalence and severity of symptoms of several neurological and mental disorders. In this chapter, we provide a systematic review of the key findings in sex differences revealed by neurotechnologies that could inform the design of future diagnostic and clinical tools, with the ultimate goal of personalizing treatments and improving brain health outcomes.