Finding the Intersection of Neuroplasticity, Stroke Recovery, and Learning: Scope and Contributions to Stroke Rehabilitation

Abstract

Aim. Neural plastic changes are experience and learning dependent, yet exploiting this knowledge to enhance clinical outcomes after stroke is in its infancy. Our aim was to search the available evidence for the core concepts of neuroplasticity, stroke recovery, and learning; identify links between these concepts; and identify and review the themes that best characterise the intersection of these three concepts. Methods. We developed a novel approach to identify the common research topics among the three areas: neuroplasticity, stroke recovery, and learning. A concept map was created a priori, and separate searches were conducted for each concept. The methodology involved three main phases: data collection and filtering, development of a clinical vocabulary, and the development of an automatic clinical text processing engine to aid the process and identify the unique and common topics. The common themes from the intersection of the three concepts were identified. These were then reviewed, with particular reference to the top 30 articles identified as intersecting these concepts. Results. The search of the three concepts separately yielded 405,636 publications. Publications were filtered to include only human studies, generating 263,751 publications related to the concepts of neuroplasticity (n=6,498), stroke recovery (n=79,060), and learning (n=178,193). A cluster concept map (network graph) was generated from the results; indicating the concept nodes, strength of link between nodes, and the intersection between all three concepts. We identified 23 common themes (topics) and the top 30 articles that best represent the intersecting themes. A time-linked pattern emerged. Discussion and Conclusions. Our novel approach developed for this review allowed the identification of the common themes/topics that intersect the concepts of neuroplasticity, stroke recovery, and learning. These may be synthesised to advance a neuroscience-informed approach to stroke rehabilitation. We also identified gaps in available literature using this approach. These may help guide future targeted research.

Gamifying Motor Rehabilitation Therapies: Challenges and Opportunities of Immersive Technologies

“…Recent studies using neuroimaging techniques show that this remapping process of the brain's sensorimotor interactions leads non-primary motor areas to contribute significantly to the execution of movements using the paretic limb after occurring a stroke. Therefore, patients can regain/relearn motor capabilities over time with proper training by integrating sensory information at the same time [42][43][44].…”

Acute Routine Leukocyte and Neutrophil Counts Are Predictive of Poststroke Recovery at 3 and 12 Months Poststroke: An Exploratory Study

“…The biophysiological correlates of worsened poststroke outcome are usually understood in the context of ongoing peripheral and central nervous system inflammation 53 and improved outcomes, including cognition, are understood in the context of neural repair and plasticity. 54 Although it is difficult to speculate on the functional neuro-immunomodulation of inflammation and neural repair in the context of gross peripheral leukocyte counts, acute innate immune responses in stroke have been suggested to be both inflammatory and neuroprotective. 55 Indeed, more rigorous studies with better defined timing for blood draw and increased sample size representative of more severe stroke cases are required to replicate the positive associations between immune cell counts and cognitive function found here.…”

Specialty Grand Challenge for NeuroRehabilitation Research

“…Such platforms provide an opportunity to advance the science in the field by providing a possibility to collate and synthesize research knowledge across the boundaries of individual research cluster and professions (20,21) as well as for various health care situations, be it in high-or low-and middle-income countries.…”