Limb linkage rehabilitation training-related changes in cortical activation and effective connectivity after stroke: A functional near-infrared spectroscopy study.

ABSTRACT: Stroke remains the leading cause of long-term disability worldwide. Rehabilitation training is essential for motor function recovery following stroke. Specifically, limb linkage rehabilitation training can stimulate motor function in the upper and lower limbs simultaneously. This study aimed to investigate limb linkage rehabilitation task-related changes in cortical activation and effective connectivity (EC) within a functional brain network after stroke by using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) imaging. Thirteen stroke patients with either left hemiparesis (L-H group, n?=?6) and or right hemiparesis (R-H group, n?=?7) and 16 healthy individuals (control group) participated in this study. A multichannel fNIRS system was used to measure changes in cerebral oxygenated hemoglobin (delta HbO₂) and deoxygenated hemoglobin (delta HHb) in the bilateral prefrontal cortices (PFCs), motor cortices (MCs), and occipital lobes (OLs) during (1) the resting state and (2) a motor rehabilitation task with upper and lower limb linkage (first 10?min [task_S1], last 10?min [task_S2]). The frequency-specific EC among the brain regions was calculated based on coupling functions and dynamic Bayesian inference in frequency intervals: high-frequency I (0.6-2?Hz) and II (0.145-0.6?Hz), low-frequency III (0.052-0.145?Hz), and very-low-frequency IV (0.021-0.052?Hz). The results showed that the stroke patients exhibited an asymmetric (greater activation in the contralesional versus ipsilesional motor region) cortical activation pattern versus healthy controls. Compared with the healthy controls, the stroke patients showed significantly lower EC (p?

SUBMITTER: Huo C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6470232 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature