Dr. McDonald’s research focuses on understanding neuropsychological deficits in patients with intractable epilepsy before and after surgical resection of the epileptic focus. Her research uses advanced structural, diffusion, and functional neuroimaging to explore the localization of language and memory processing in patients with epilepsy, with the goal of determining the best predictors of postsurgical outcome. Her research goals are aligned with the clinical goal of developing and implementing new cognitive/imaging paradigms for clinical use. She is also involved in neuroimaging and neuropsychological research in patients with Alzheimer’s disease and mild cognitive impairment, as well as research examining the application of new, advanced diffusion methods for the detection and monitoring of brain tumors in patients with high-grade gliomas and cerebral metastases.