Neural plasticity and functional recovery following cortical ischemic injury

Stroke is a leading cause of persistent motor disability, but few effective treatments exist for application at chronic post-injury timepoints. An approach that combines rehabilitative training with cortical electrical stimulation was evaluated in a nonhuman primate model of cortical ischemic stroke. Results indicate that cortical stimulation plus rehabilitation enhanced motor recovery compared to rehabilitation alone. Functional mapping of the spared, peri-infarct motor cortex revealed expansions of motor representations related to the rehabilitative task, with greater expansions for subjects that underwent the combined therapy. It is concluded that electrical stimulation combined with rehabilitation enhanced plastic reorganization of the affected motor cortex, leading to superior behavioral recovery.