ADVANCED NEWS: Research Highlights of Deep Brain Stimulation of TBI

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Deep brain stimulation promotes late functional recovery after traumatic brain injury

This article has no abstract so we have provided the first paragraph of the full text.[/i]

Severe traumatic brain injury often leads to widespread loss of cerebral connectivity and the consequent failure of brain mechanisms that support communication and goal-directed behavior. Patients in a minimally conscious state (MCS) can, however, show unexpected preservation of large-scale cerebral networks. Schiff et al. have reported the use of bilateral deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the central thalamus in a patient in a chronic MCS. The subject was a 38-year-old man who had sustained a closed head injury 6 years before enrollment.