PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:
2-Dec-2014
Contact: Carolann Murphy cmurphy@kesslerfoundation.org 973-324-8382 Kessler Foundation @KesslerFdn
West Orange, NJ. December 2, 2014. Stroke researchers have found that the presence of frontal lesions predicts better functional improvement in individuals with spatial neglect who received prism adaptation therapy. "Integrity of medial temporal structures may predict better improvement of spatial neglect with prism adaptation treatment" (doi: 10.1007/s11682-012-9200-5) was published in September in the Neuroimaging and Rehabilitation Special Issue of Brain Imaging & Behavior. The authors are Peii Chen, PhD, Priyanka Shah, and A.M. Barrett, MD, of Kessler Foundation, Kelly M. Goedert of Seton Hall University, and Anne L. Foundas of the University of Missouri.
The study was conducted in 21 patients with left-sided spatial neglect, a common complication of right-brain stroke. The participants underwent 2 weeks of prism adaptation treatment, and 4 weeks of followup. Examination of clinical scans showed that 3 participants had frontal lesions; 8 had no frontal lesions. "Functional improvement was seen after treatment," noted Dr. Chen, "but not equally among the patients. Those with lesions of the frontal cortex had much greater improvement than those without these lesions. Further examination using voxel-based lesion-behavior mapping revealed that in this group, the integrity of medial temporal structures had been maintained. Additional research is needed to determine the course of spatial neglect in this subset of patients, and whether they may respond better to prism therapy."
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The study was funded by the National Institutes of Neurological Disorders & Stroke (R01 NS055808, Barrett), the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Institute of Child Health & Development (K24 HD062647, PI, Barrett), and Kessler Foundation.
About Stroke Rehabilitation Research at Kessler Foundation
Research studies span all domains of post-stroke cognitive dysfunction, but emphasize hidden disabilities after stroke, including hidden disabilities of functional vision (spatial bias and spatial neglect). Students, resident physicians, and post-doctoral trainees are mentored in translational neuroscience of rehabilitation. Dr. Barrett and her colleagues work closely with the clinical staff at Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation. Among their collaborative efforts are the founding of the Network for Spatial Neglect and development of the Kessler Foundation Neglect Assessment Process (KF-NAPTM). Stroke Research receives funding from the Department of Education/NIDRR; the National Institutes of Neurological Disorders & Stroke, the National Institutes of Health/NICHD/NCMRR; Kessler Foundation; the Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey; and the Wallerstein Foundation for Geriatric Improvement. Scientists have faculty appointments at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School.
About A.M. Barrett, MD
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Stroke researchers link frontal lesions with improved spatial neglect after prism therapy