Cerebellar Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation to Augment Chronic Aphasia Treatment

项目摘要 失语症是中风后致残的主要原因之一。卒中后失语症患者 留下一定程度的慢性缺乏症，目前的康复治疗对这些疾病的疗效各不相同。一个 越来越多的证据表明，经颅直流电刺激(Tdcs)可能对 提高行为失语的治疗效果。应聘者提出一个全面的培训计划 旨在扩大她对与tdcs失语治疗相关的大脑可塑性的理解，通过提供 在慢性失语症的神经调节技术，结构-功能关系， 行为失语症的治疗、认知功能的小脑机制和高级神经成像 技巧。这项研究计划将允许应聘者将这些技能应用于理解语言 伴有大面积病变的失语症慢性卒中幸存者命名缺陷的恢复和治疗。 具体而言，本研究旨在研究右侧小脑tdcs对命名和功能的影响。 慢性卒中失语症患者语言网络连通性的变化。在接受指导的过程中 在这一阶段，候选人将评估tdcs+计算机化命名疗法与 在干预后立即对训练和未训练的项目进行计算机化的命名治疗 治疗后2个月。这将使我们能够评估小脑tdcs的潜在益处和可持续性。 在有较大损伤的中风幸存者中，将训练项目泛化为未训练项目。在.期间 独立阶段，候选人将检查右侧小脑tdcs网络调制的拓扑图。 对慢性失语症患者进行静息状态功能磁共振检查。这将使我们能够评估极性- 小脑TDCs诱导的脑网络动力学的特异性变化提供了一种可能的机制 说明失语症患者的神经可塑性，并解释小脑tdcs调节的行为变化。

Project Summary Aphasia is one of the leading causes of disability following stroke. Individuals with post-stroke aphasia are left with some degree of chronic deficit for which current rehabilitative treatments are variably effective. A small growing body of evidence suggests that transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) may be useful for enhancing the effects of behavioral aphasia treatment. The candidate proposes a comprehensive training plan that seeks to expand her understanding of brain plasticity associated with tDCS aphasia treatment by providing extensive training in neuromodulatory technique, structure–function relationships in chronic aphasia, behavioral aphasia treatment, cerebellar mechanisms of cognitive functions, and advanced neuroimaging techniques. This research proposal will permit the candidate to apply these skills in understanding language recovery and treatment of naming deficits in chronic stroke survivors with aphasia with large lesions. Specifically, this proposal aims to study the effects of right cerebellar tDCS on naming and functional connectivity changes of the language network in chronic stroke survivors with aphasia. During the mentored phase, the candidate will evaluate the benefits of tDCS + computerized naming therapy compared to computerized naming therapy alone on trained and untrained items immediately after intervention and through 2 months post-therapy. This will allow us to evaluate the potential benefits and sustainability of cerebellar tDCS in stroke survivors with large lesions and the generalization of trained items to untrained items. During the independent phase, the candidate will examine the topography of network modulation by right cerebellar tDCS in individuals with chronic aphasia by using resting-state fMRI. This will enable us to evaluate the polarity- specific changes in brain network dynamics induced by cerebellar tDCS to provide a plausible mechanistic account of neuroplasticity and explain behavioral changes that are modulated by cerebellar tDCS in aphasia.