Rational basis of rehabilitation following cerebral lesions: a review of the concept of cerebral plasticity.
Improvement and recovery of function after a cerebral lesion imply a reorganization of the central nervous system. This capacity of the nervous system to adapt its structural organization is referred to as cerebral plasticity. This paper summarizes the biochemical and histological basis of cerebral plasticity, reviews the modalities of brain reorganization following amputations and cerebral lesions, and concludes with a brief review of the most salient aspects of rehabilitation of memory, language, executive functions and dementia.
Boller
François
F
Unit 549, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Paris, France. boller@broca.inserm.fr
D000818:Animals; D001037:Aphasia / Q000534:rehabilitation; D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001927:Brain Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D003704:Dementia / Q000534:rehabilitation; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning; D008568:Memory; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity; D020127:Recovery of Function