Cognitive Recovery and Rehabilitation After Brain Injury: Mechanisms, Challenges and Support

Abstract

When the brain is injured by vascular incidents (stroke) or mechanical impact leading to traumatic brain injury (TBI), the consequences for the patient are almost inevitably impairments within the motor, sensory, and/or cognitive domains. Such impairments may initially appear more disturbing and devastating to the patient – as well as to her/his loved ones – if the motor abilities are affected. The future of the patients in terms of quality of life, ability to return to independent living and potentially work may, however, depend more crucially on the degree to which the cerebral injury has caused impairments within cognitive domains such as language, attention, learning, memory, and problem solving (e.g. Moore & Stambrook, 1995). In spite of the devastating impact cognitive impairments frequently have on the future life of brain injured patients, there has historically been a disproportional focus of both research and therapeutic efforts on the motor symptoms. While research and therapeutic development within the motor domains are still in need of greater efforts, there is an even more compelling need for such efforts within the area of cognitive consequences of brain injury.