Unlike in vivo MRS which is intensively used in clinical settings, fMRS is used primarily as a research tool, both in a clinical context, for example, to study metabolite dynamics in patients with epilepsy, migraine and dyslexia, and to study healthy brains.
fMRS can be used to study metabolism dynamics also in other parts of the body, for example, in muscles and heart; however, brain studies have been far more popular.
The main goals of fMRS studies are to contribute to the understanding of energy metabolism in the brain, and to test and improve data acquisition and quantification techniques to ensure and enhance validity and reliability of fMRS studies.