M5 Post-injury neuroplasticity (cortical reorganization)

Title

After a brain injury, the nervous system can functionally reorganize the remaining tissue through plasticity mechanisms that directly reuse the connectivity formalism of E08 and the synaptic plasticity of E07. Rehabilitation favors the recruitment of cortical areas adjacent to the injured area, proportional to its proximity and the intensity of training, and can temporarily reopen a window of plasticity similar to that of development (direct extension of the P(t) function of E14), which explains why early rehabilitation is usually more effective. Functional recovery follows an exponential learning curve until a residual function is reached, while different cortical representations compete with each other for the available territory in a "winner-take-all" scheme. In extensive injuries, part of the lost function may be transferred to the contralateral hemisphere (homotopic reorganization), and the intensity of rehabilitation has a direct dose-response effect on the speed of recovery.

ID:4277