Browse the latest research summaries in the field of neuroplasticity for spinal cord injury patients and caregivers.
Showing 61-70 of 159 results
JOURNAL OF NEUROTRAUMA, 2017 • May 15, 2017
This review discusses how intensive training after SCI can improve lower extremity function by utilizing the spinal cord's intrinsic plasticity and engaging innate locomotor circuitry. The review high...
KEY FINDING: Adaptive spinal training requires adequate and appropriate afferent input to modulate spinal circuitry, like the central pattern generator (CPG), for rhythmic locomotor activities with proprioceptive and sensory feedback.
Aging and Disease, 2015 • August 1, 2015
This review discusses the theoretical and clinical concepts of Activity-Based Restorative Therapies (ABRT) presented during an inter-institutional training program, along with the perceptions of the a...
KEY FINDING: ABRT components improve functional mobility and reverse negative body composition changes after SCI, reducing cardiovascular and metabolic disease risk factors.
Front. Neural Circuits, 2016 • March 2, 2016
The study investigates the role of spared axons on neuroplasticity in the lumbar enlargement after thoracic SCI, using an instrumental learning paradigm (ILP). Early after SCI (7 days), spinal learnin...
KEY FINDING: Spared axons are critical for adaptive plasticity in lumbar interneurons after thoracic SCI, enabling locomotor learning.
Behavioural Neurology, 2016 • January 12, 2016
The study aimed to investigate forelimb motor function after cervical spinal cord injury in juvenile and adult rats by performing a left segmental hemisection of the spinal cord after C3-C4 laminectom...
KEY FINDING: Left hemisection of the cervical spinal cord was not related to right-sided motor functions.
The Journal of Neuroscience, 2017 • March 29, 2017
This study demonstrates that deleting CX3CR1, a chemokine receptor primarily found on microglia and a subset of macrophages, enhances neuroprotection and plasticity in spared fibers following spinal c...
KEY FINDING: CX3CR1 deficiency in microglia and macrophages promotes a tissue-repair phenotype and increases expression of neurotrophic and gliogenic proteins after spinal cord injury.
Neurosci Lett, 2017 • April 24, 2017
This study examined the impact of long-term vibration training on H-reflex paired-pulse depression in individuals with chronic, complete SCI. The primary goal was to determine if vibration training co...
KEY FINDING: Trained limbs of all five participants showed H-reflex depression values within the range of acute SCI and non-SCI H-reflex depression.
Journal of Physiology, 2001 • May 1, 2001
The loss of supraspinal input results in a marked change in the functional efficacy of the remaining synapses and neurons of intraspinal and peripheral afferent origin. The spinal cord can more readil...
KEY FINDING: Loss of supraspinal input after SCI leads to changes in the functional efficacy of remaining synapses and neurons.
J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry, 2001 • July 1, 2001
The study evaluated the long-term effects of locomotor training on leg extensor EMG activity in patients with complete and incomplete SCI. Results showed that regular locomotor training effectively im...
KEY FINDING: Locomotor training improves leg extensor EMG activity in both complete and incomplete SCI patients during the training period.
Ann N Y Acad Sci, 2004 • December 1, 2004
Rehabilitation seeks to reduce impairments from neurological conditions using the brain's plasticity. It leverages biological changes after injury and external factors to influence neural pathways. Th...
KEY FINDING: The cortex in humans contributes to reaching, grasping, individuated finger movements, and walking-related motor control.
J Spinal Cord Med, 2007 • January 1, 2007
This study examined the impact of environmental enrichment on sensorimotor function in rats with chronic spinal cord injuries. Rats were subjected to a contusive injury at T8 and, three months later, ...
KEY FINDING: Rats in the enriched environment scored significantly better on the BBB locomotor test compared to the control group.