Plasticity and Functional Recovery Flashcards
what is brain plasticity
the ability to change and adapt as a result of experience, aids recovery
what is functional recovery
the brains ability to transfer functions from damaged to undamaged areas following trauma, enabling recovery
what are the three types of experience saying neural organisation
life experience
video games
meditation
how does life experience cause neural organisation
frequently used pathways develop stronger connections whereas rarely used neurons eventually die - there is a natural decline in cognitive functioning with age
what experiment provides evidence for life experience causing neural organisation
Boyke et al - juggling taught to 60 year olds increased grey matter in visual cortex
how does playing video games cause neural organisation
makes complex motor and cognitive demands on the brain
what experiment provides evidence for playing video games causing neural organisation
Kuhn et al - participants playing Super Mario for 30 minutes a day increased their grey matter bringing new synaptic connections
how does meditation cause neural organisation
been found to change the inner workings of the brain in the short term and on a more permanent basis
what experiment provided evidence for meditation causing neural organisation
Davidson et al - compared the brains of Tibetan monks to student volunteers, found greater gamma wave activity in monks even before meditation
what are the four mechanisms for recovery
1 - axon sprouting
2 - denervation supersensitivity
3 - neuronal unmasking
4 - stem cells
describe axon sprouting
axon damaged - connection with neighbouring neuron lost - other axons already connected w that neighbouring neuron sprout extra connections to compensate for the damaged one
when does axon sprouting occur
2 weeks after damage
describe denervation supersensitivity
when axons that do similar jobs become aroused to a higher level to compensate for a lost one
what is one drawback of denervation supersensitivity
can result in over sensitivity messages eg pain
describe neuronal unmasking
if you increase the input you can unmask dormant synapses and connections to unused areas of the brain - developing new structures
what are stem cells
cells which potentially take on a variety of functions
how can stem cells aid recovery
if implanted could replace damaged cells, rescue injured cells as they secrete growth factors or create neural networks linking the uninjured and damaged regions of the brain
what are the 5 mediating factors for functional recovery
1 - gender
2 - educational attainment
3 - age
4 - perseverance
5 - physical exhaustion, stress and alcohol consumption
what does perseverance refer to as a mediating factor
a function may appear to be lost but it may be the individual not trying
which study provided evidence for perseverance as a mediating factor
Taub & Berman - monkey w limb that lost sensory input, money doesn’t use that limb but if lost others would have no choice but to, motor nerves still connected but sensory nerve damaged
what does physical exhaustion, stress and alcohol mean when refering to mediating factors
when a function is recovered in an individual it then takes them considerable effort to complete the task resulting in fatigue
what evidence is there for physical exhaustion, stress and alcohol consumption as mediating factors
stress hinders recovery, alcoholics who stop drinking make faster recoveries in terms of brain function
what does age mean in reference to mediating factors
functional plasticity decreases with age with older patients regaining less function
what evidence is there for age as a mediating factor of recovery
Danielli et al - case study EB, aged 2 lost much of left hemisphere meaning no linguistic abilities, by aged 17 right hemisphere had compensated for loss of left and was functioning linguistically well
what does gender mean in reference to mediating factors
because women’s function is lateralised they recover better from brain injury than men but there is conflicting evidence
what evidence is there for gender as a mediating factor of recovery
Ratcliffe et al - women performed better than men on tests of working memory and attention and language, men better in visual analytic skills
what does educational attainment mean in reference to mediating factors of recovery
the higher an individuals education, the stronger their recovery from brain injury is
what evidence is there for educational attainment as a mediating factor of recovery
Schneider et al - patients are more likely to be disability free one year after severe brain injury if college level educated
