Action research in rehabilitation with chronic stroke recovery: A case report with a focus on neural plasticity

2016 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 261-272 ◽  
Author(s):  
Malene Pedersen ◽  
Tina H. Bundgaard ◽  
Peter Zeeman ◽  
Jørgen R. Jørgensen ◽  
Peter M.B. Sørensen ◽  
...  
2010 ◽  
Vol 48 (4) ◽  
pp. 578-582 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Caria ◽  
Cornelia Weber ◽  
Doris Brötz ◽  
Ander Ramos ◽  
Luca F. Ticini ◽  
...  

Sensors ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (13) ◽  
pp. 3754 ◽  
Author(s):  
Octavio Marin-Pardo ◽  
Christopher M. Laine ◽  
Miranda Rennie ◽  
Kaori L. Ito ◽  
James Finley ◽  
...  

Severe impairment of limb movement after stroke can be challenging to address in the chronic stage of stroke (e.g., greater than 6 months post stroke). Recent evidence suggests that physical therapy can still promote meaningful recovery after this stage, but the required high amount of therapy is difficult to deliver within the scope of standard clinical practice. Digital gaming technologies are now being combined with brain–computer interfaces to motivate engaging and frequent exercise and promote neural recovery. However, the complexity and expense of acquiring brain signals has held back widespread utilization of these rehabilitation systems. Furthermore, for people that have residual muscle activity, electromyography (EMG) might be a simpler and equally effective alternative. In this pilot study, we evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of an EMG-based variant of our REINVENT virtual reality (VR) neurofeedback rehabilitation system to increase volitional muscle activity while reducing unintended co-contractions. We recruited four participants in the chronic stage of stroke recovery, all with severely restricted active wrist movement. They completed seven 1-hour training sessions during which our head-mounted VR system reinforced activation of the wrist extensor muscles without flexor activation. Before and after training, participants underwent a battery of clinical and neuromuscular assessments. We found that training improved scores on standardized clinical assessments, equivalent to those previously reported for brain–computer interfaces. Additionally, training may have induced changes in corticospinal communication, as indexed by an increase in 12–30 Hz corticomuscular coherence and by an improved ability to maintain a constant level of wrist muscle activity. Our data support the feasibility of using muscle–computer interfaces in severe chronic stroke, as well as their potential to promote functional recovery and trigger neural plasticity.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lioi Giulia ◽  
Veliz Adolfo ◽  
Coloigner Julie ◽  
Duché Quentin ◽  
Butet Simon ◽  
...  

AbstractStroke is a complex motor disease that not only affects perilesional areas but also global brain networks in both hemispheres. Neurofeedback (NF) is a promising technique to enhance neural plasticity and support functional improvement after stroke by means of brain self-regulation. Most of the studies using NF or brain computer interfaces for stroke rehabilitation have assessed treatment effects focusing on motor outcomes and successful activation of targeted cortical regions. However, given the crucial role of large-scale networks reorganization for stroke recovery, it is now believed that assessment of brain connectivity is central to predict treatment response and to individualize rehabilitation therapies. In this study, we assessed the impact of EEG-fMRI NF training on connectivity strength and direction using a Dynamic Causal Modeling approach. We considered a motor network including both ipsilesional and contralesional premotor, supplementary and primary motor areas. Our results in nine chronic stroke patients indicate that NF upregulation of targeted areas (ipsilesional SMA and M1) not only modulated activation patterns, but also had a more widespread impact on fMRI bilateral motor networks. In particular, inter-hemispheric connectivity between premotor and primary motor regions decreased, and ipsilesional self-inhibitory connections were reduced in strength, indicating an increase in activation during the NF motor task. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first work that investigates fMRI connectivity changes elicited by training of localized motor targets in stroke. Our results open new perspectives in the understanding of large-scale effects of NF training and the design of more effective NF strategies, based on the pathophysiology underlying stroke-induced deficits.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 224
Author(s):  
Gemma Alder ◽  
Nada Signal ◽  
Alain C. Vandal ◽  
Sharon Olsen ◽  
Mads Jochumsen ◽  
...  

Advances in our understanding of neural plasticity have prompted the emergence of neuromodulatory interventions, which modulate corticomotor excitability (CME) and hold potential for accelerating stroke recovery. Endogenous paired associative stimulation (ePAS) involves the repeated pairing of a single pulse of peripheral electrical stimulation (PES) with endogenous movement-related cortical potentials (MRCPs), which are derived from electroencephalography. However, little is known about the optimal parameters for its delivery. A factorial design with repeated measures delivered four different versions of ePAS, in which PES intensities and movement type were manipulated. Linear mixed models were employed to assess interaction effects between PES intensity (suprathreshold (Hi) and motor threshold (Lo)) and movement type (Voluntary and Imagined) on CME. ePAS interventions significantly increased CME compared to control interventions, except in the case of Lo-Voluntary ePAS. There was an overall main effect for the Hi-Voluntary ePAS intervention immediately post-intervention (p = 0.002), with a sub-additive interaction effect at 30 min’ post-intervention (p = 0.042). Hi-Imagined and Lo-Imagined ePAS significantly increased CME for 30 min post-intervention (p = 0.038 and p = 0.043 respectively). The effects of the two PES intensities were not significantly different. CME was significantly greater after performing imagined movements, compared to voluntary movements, with motor threshold PES (Lo) 15 min post-intervention (p = 0.012). This study supports previous research investigating Lo-Imagined ePAS and extends those findings by illustrating that ePAS interventions that deliver suprathreshold intensities during voluntary or imagined movements (Hi-Voluntary and Hi-Imagined) also increase CME. Importantly, our findings indicate that stimulation intensity and movement type interact in ePAS interventions. Factorial designs are an efficient way to explore the effects of manipulating the parameters of neuromodulatory interventions. Further research is required to ensure that these parameters are appropriately refined to maximise intervention efficacy for people with stroke and to support translation into clinical practice.


2015 ◽  
Vol 95 (7) ◽  
pp. 1039-1045 ◽  
Author(s):  
Satoru Amano ◽  
Takashi Takebayashi ◽  
Keisuke Hanada ◽  
Atsushi Umeji ◽  
Kohei Marumoto ◽  
...  

Background and Purpose Spasticity, an aspect of upper motor neuron syndrome, is a widespread problem in patients with stroke. To date, no study has reported the long-term (up to 1 year) outcomes of botulinum toxin (BTX) injection in combination with constraint-induced movement therapy in patients with chronic stroke. In this case report, the long-term (1 year) effects of the combination of BTX type A injection and constraint-induced movement therapy on spasticity and arm function in a patient with chronic stroke and arm paresis are described. Case Description The patient was a 66-year-old man who had had an infarction in the right posterior limb of the internal capsule 4 years before the intervention. At screening, the patient was not able to voluntarily extend his interphalangeal or metacarpophalangeal joints beyond the 10 degrees required for constraint-induced movement therapy. From 12 days after BTX type A injection, the patient received 5 hours of constraint-induced movement therapy for 10 weekdays. Outcomes All outcome measures (Modified Ashworth Scale, Fugl-Meyer Assessment, Action Research Arm Test, and amount of use scale of the Motor Activity Log) improved substantially over the 1-year period (before intervention to 1 year after intervention). Repeat BTX type A injections were not necessary because muscle tone and arm function did not worsen during the observation period. Discussion The improved arm function may have reflected improvements in volitional movements and coordination or speed of movements in the paretic arm as a result of a reduction in spasticity, a reduction of learned nonuse behaviors, or use-dependent plasticity after the combination of BTX type A injection and constraint-induced movement therapy. In addition, the possibility of an influence of the passage of time or the Hawthorne effect cannot be ruled out. If this approach proves useful in future controlled studies, it may reduce the rising medical costs of the treatment of stroke.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (S1) ◽  
pp. 17-17
Author(s):  
Joseph B. Humphries ◽  
David T. Bundy ◽  
Eric C. Leuthardt ◽  
Thy N. Huskey

OBJECTIVES/SPECIFIC AIMS: The objective of this study is to determine the degree to which the use of a contralesionally-controlled brain-computer interface for stroke rehabilitation drives change in interhemispheric motor cortical activity. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: Ten chronic stroke patients were trained in the use of a brain-computer interface device for stroke recovery. Patients perform motor imagery to control the opening and closing of a motorized hand orthosis. This device was sent home with patients for 12 weeks, and patients were asked to use the device 1 hour per day, 5 days per week. The Action Research Arm Test (ARAT) was performed at 2-week intervals to assess motor function improvement. Before the active motor imagery task, patients were asked to quietly rest for 90 seconds before the task to calibrate recording equipment. EEG signals were acquired from 2 electrodes—one each centered over left and right primary motor cortex. Signals were preprocessed with a 60 Hz notch filter for environmental noise and referenced to the common average. Power envelopes for 1 Hz frequency bands (1–30 Hz) were calculated through Gabor wavelet convolution. Correlations between electrodes were then calculated for each frequency envelope on the first and last 5 runs, thus generating one correlation value per subject, per run. The chosen runs approximately correspond to the first and last week of device usage. These correlations were Fisher Z-transformed for comparison. The first and last 5 run correlations were averaged separately to estimate baseline and final correlation values. A difference was then calculated between these averages to determine correlation change for each frequency. The relationship between beta-band correlation changes (13–30 Hz) and the change in ARAT score was determined by calculating a Pearson correlation. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Beta-band inter-electrode correlations tended to decrease more in patients achieving greater motor recovery (Pearson’s r=−0.68, p=0.031). A similar but less dramatic effect was observed with alpha-band (8–12 Hz) correlation changes (Pearson’s r=−0.42, p=0.22). DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT: The negative correlation between inter-electrode power envelope correlations in the beta frequency band and motor recovery indicates that activity in the motor cortex on each hemisphere may become more independent during recovery. The role of the unaffected hemisphere in stroke recovery is currently under debate; there is conflicting evidence regarding whether it supports or inhibits the lesioned hemisphere. These findings may support the notion of interhemispheric inhibition, as we observe less in common between activity in the 2 hemispheres in patients successfully achieving recovery. Future neuroimaging studies with greater spatial resolution than available with EEG will shed further light on changes in interhemispheric communication that occur during stroke rehabilitation.


2013 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefano Mazzoleni ◽  
Patrizio Sale ◽  
Marco Franceschini ◽  
Samuele Bigazzi ◽  
Maria Chiara Carrozza ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Hee-Joon Shin ◽  
Ju-Hyeok Lee ◽  
Dong-Kyu Seo ◽  
Hong-Rae Kim ◽  
Ok-Kon Moon ◽  
...  

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