Neural networks are not rigidly wired but rather highly plastic structures, the functional architecture of which can be actively reorganized in response to external or internal events. Lesions of such networks induce plastic processes which in time may lead to a recovery of the initially disrupted function. This type of neural plasticity is the main focus of the book, which presents a broad spectrum of experimental paradigms for lesion-induced plasticity as in the spinal cord, the vestibular, oculomotor, visual and olfactory system, the cerebellum and the cerebral cortex, including recent methodological developments. Concepts and perspectives in understanding neural plasticity are reported in reviews and original research reports and are thoroughly discussed.

Neural networks are not rigidly wired but rather highly plastic structures, the functional architecture of which can be actively reorganized in response to external or internal events. Lesions of such networks induce plastic processes which in time may lead to a recovery of the initially disrupted function. This type of neural plasticity is the main focus of the book, which presents a broad spectrum of experimental paradigms for lesion-induced plasticity as in the spinal cord, the vestibular, oculomotor, visual and olfactory system, the cerebellum and the cerebral cortex, including recent methodological developments. Concepts and perspectives in understanding neural plasticity are reported in reviews and original research reports and are thoroughly discussed.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) remains a significant source of death and permanent disability, contributing to nearly one-third of all injury related deaths in the United States and exacting a profound personal and economic toll. Despite the increased resources that have recently been brought to bear to improve our understanding of TBI, the developme

Sensorimotor systems are not rigidly wired predetermined networks but rather highly plastic structures that learn and modify their entire performance in response to changes in external or internal conditions. Lesions or distortions of the system's input, which initially cause a functional disorganization, induce an active reorganization which often leads to a recovery of function. Examples of lesion-induced neural plasticity have been known for some hundred years; however, an awareness of their value as research tools is relatively new. This current interest is a consequence of rapid ly changing ideas concerning the nature of CNS organization. Out of these, concepts are emerging which describe neural nets as modifiable, highly dynamic, self-organizing structures. This trend is clearly reflected in this volume, which contains the proceedings of a symposium held in Bremen in July 1980 as a satellite meeting of the XXVIIIth International Congress of Physiological Sciences. The first part of this conference was devoted to some gen eral aspects of plasticity, discussing the current theories of functional recovery as well as morphological, neurochemical, physiological, molecular, and ontogenetic aspects. The second part dealt with lesion induced plasticity in specific sensorimotor systems of the spinal cord, brain stem, and cerebral cortex.

This title addresses fundamental questions about human brain development through the study of children with early occurring focal brain injury.

This volume makes clear that the cognitive and behavioural symptoms of neurologic disorders and syndromes are dynamic and changing. Each chapter describes the neuroplastic processes at work in a particular condition, giving rise to these ongoing cognitive changes.