functional recovery after trauma Flashcards
how does cognitive reserve affect functional recovery from brain trauma?
shnider et al discovered found that the more time brain injury patients had spent in education- which was taken as an indication of their cognitive reserve- the greater the chance of a disability free recovery.
2 5ths of patients studied who achieved disability free recovery had more than 16 years education
compared to 10% of patients who had less than 12 years of education
how does age affect functional recovery from brain trauma?
the brain is more plastic when we are young making it easier to uncover secondary neural pathways
how does smoking affect functional recovery after brain trauma ?
smoking hardens blood vessels making it harder for them to reform
when does functional recovery occur ?
when the brain forms new synaptic connections close to the area of damage and secondary neural pathways are unmasked (neuronal unmasking)
what is functional recovery an example of ?
neural plasticity
what structural changes supports functional recovery?
reformation of blood vessels to provide oxygenated blood
axonal sprouting (the growth of new nerve endings which connect undamaged nerve cells from new neural pathways
recruitment of homologous areas ( similar areas on the opposite side of the brain will take over specific tasks. if the original area heals the functionality may shift back to the original side)
what is axonal sprouting?
the growth of new nerve endings which connect undamaged nerve cells from new neural pathways
what is recruitment of homologous areas ?
similar areas on the opposite side of the brain will take over specific tasks. if the original area heals the functionality may shift back to the original side)
how does our understanding of how the brain recovers from trauma support the concept of brain plasticity ?
functional recovery is made possible because of neural plasticity the fact that our brain changes structure allows axonal sprouting , neuronal unmasking and recruitment of homologous areas needed for recovery
what is Taijiri et al - research into functional recovery
found that stem cells provided to rats after brain trauma showed a clear development of neuron like cells in the area of injury.
this demonstrates the ability of the brain to create new connections using neurons manufactured by stem cells
what is elbert et al?
it is possible that the ability for functional recovery can deteriorate with age
elbert concluded that the capacity for neural reorganisation is much greater in children than adults meaning that neural regeneration is less effective in older brains
this may explain why adults find change more demading that younger people
so individual differences should be considered when assessing the likelihood of functional recovery in the brain after trauma
