When and what type of rehabilitation can influence late onset behavior in diffuse TBI
What is it about?
As rehabilitation strategies advance as therapeutic interventions, the modality and onset of rehabilitation after traumatic brain injury (TBI) are critical to optimize treatment. Our laboratory has detected and characterized a late-onset, long-lasting sensory hypersensitivity to whisker stimulation in diffuse brain-injured rats; a deficit that is comparable to visual or auditory sensory hypersensitivity in humans with an acquired brain injury. We hypothesize that the type of rehab (deprivation vs stimulation) and onset of rehab (1st week of second week post-injury) will differentially influence sensory hypersensitivity in response to the Whisker Nuisance Task (WNT) as well as WNT-induced corticosterone (CORT) stress response in diffuse brain-injured rats and controls.
Why is it important?
Onset of intervention may be pivotal in recovery, and at present, is not universally agreed upon in a clinical setting. Our results demonstrate that circuit-directed therapy is capable of activating the whisker circuit and that the type and timing of rehabilitation can differentially influence lasting behavior and stress responses between injured and sham rats. Stimulation therapy resulted in overall lower CORT levels, suggesting it may be a better approach than deprivation therapy in this regard.