Brain restoration as an emerging field in neurology and neuroscience

Abstract

Restoration of brain function was long thought to be impossible. However, as the publications in the journal Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience (RNN) for more than 20 years attest, clinically useful improvement can be achieved after damage or diseases of the brain, the retina, and the peripheral nervous system. By reviewing both pre-clinical studies and clinical work, we explore what advancements can be made today and what to expect going forward. For example, in the last few years we have seen a clinical focus in the area of non-invasive brain stimulations and rehabilitation training trials. In basic animal research multi-modal approaches have been presented to restore brain function with a combination of different treatments. We think that this is an exciting time in the area of restoration of brain function with many new strategies aimed at helping recovering their impaired neurological functions. © 2013-IOS Press and the authors.