Neuropsychological rehabilitation
-
Neuropsychol Rehabil · Jan 2012
Controlled Clinical TrialThe Working Memory Questionnaire: a scale to assess everyday life problems related to deficits of working memory in brain injured patients.
The objective of the present study was to develop a scale designed to assess the consequences of working memory deficits in everyday life. The Working Memory Questionnaire (WMQ) is a self-administered scale, addressing three dimensions of working memory: short-term storage, attention, and executive control. The normative sample included 313 healthy participants. ⋯ A good concurrent validity was found with the Cognitive Failure Questionnaire and the Rating Scale of Attentional Behaviour (Spearman's Rho = .90 and .81, respectively, both ps < .0001). In addition, the total complaint score significantly correlated with neuropsychological measures of working memory (visual spans and short-term memory with interference) and with global intellectual efficiency (Raven's Matrices) but not with digit spans. Further studies are needed to measure the internal structure of the scale, and to compare self- and proxy-ratings.
-
Neuropsychol Rehabil · Oct 2011
ReviewTranscranial magnetic stimulation in cognitive rehabilitation.
Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) can generate an increase or a decrease of neuronal excitability, which can modulate cognition and behaviour. Transcranial magnetic stimulation-induced cortical changes have been shown to result in neural plasticity. Thus, TMS provides an important opportunity to gain more insight into the mechanisms responsible for the remarkable flexibility of the central nervous system. ⋯ The basic TMS principles are introduced, together with the clinical application for diagnosis and prognosis, the biological aspects, and the use in cognitive neuroscience studies. Finally, several hypotheses are discussed to explain the likely mechanisms induced by TMS that favour the recovery of a function after brain damage and cause the adult brain to undergo plasticity. The possibility of non-invasively interacting with the functioning of the brain and its plasticity mechanisms - a possibility that may eventually lead to cognitive and behavioural modifications - opens new and exciting scenarios in the cognitive neurorehabilitation field.
-
Neuropsychol Rehabil · Jun 2011
Sense of coherence and disability and the relationship with life satisfaction 6-15 years after traumatic brain injury in northern Sweden.
The objective of the study was to assess sense of coherence (SOC) many years after traumatic brain injury (TBI) and explore the relationship between SOC and self-rated life satisfaction (LS) as well as measures of functioning and disability, sex, age at injury, injury severity and time post-injury. Sixty-six individuals (aged 18-65 years) who were 6-15 years post-injury were interviewed. Data on SOC (SOC-13 item scale), measures of functioning and disability (Mayo-Portland Adaptability Inventory, MPAI-4), LS (Satisfaction with Life Scale, SWLS), and sex, age at injury, injury severity and time post-injury were analysed with hierarchical multiple regression analyses. ⋯ It was concluded that SOC in this group of individuals with TBI who were many years post-injury was similar to nondisabled individuals. SOC, together with emotional factors, social participation and injury-related factors, were determinants of LS. These results confirm that LS after TBI is a complex phenomenon dependent on several factors that are important targets for rehabilitation professionals.
-
Neuropsychol Rehabil · Dec 2010
Case Reports Comparative StudyConstraint therapy versus intensive training: implications for motor control and brain plasticity after stroke.
Many studies have demonstrated that constraint induced movement therapy (CIMT) improves upper limb motor impairment following stroke. This rehabilitation method combines constraint of the less-affected upperlimb with intensive training of the paretic limb. The aim of the present study was to evaluate, in a single case study, the respective effects of each of these two therapeutic interventions. ⋯ These data could reflect a specific effect of treatment on each phase of the prehension task, or a more general proximal-to-distal gradient of recovery. Although firm conclusions are not warranted on the basis of this single case study, we confirm the utility of 3D motion analysis to evaluate objectively the effectiveness of a therapeutic intervention. We also discuss the implications of our findings for understanding processes of motor control reorganisation.
-
Neuropsychol Rehabil · Dec 2010
Self-reported traumatic brain injury in male young offenders: a risk factor for re-offending, poor mental health and violence?
Adolescence is a risk period for offending and for traumatic brain injury (TBI) and TBI is a risk factor for poor mental health and for offending. TBI has been largely neglected from guidance on managing the mental health needs of young offenders. We sought to determine the rate of self-reported TBI, of various severities, in a male, adolescent youth offending population. ⋯ Those with self-reported TBI were also at risk of greater mental health problems and of misuse of cannabis. TBI may be associated with offending behaviour and worse mental health outcomes. Addressing TBI within adolescent offenders with neurorehabilitative input may be important for improving well-being and reducing re-offending.