Mechanisms of Rehabilitation and Recovery in Visuo-Spatial Neglect

Changes in attentional abilities are common after stroke and make it difficult for an individual to regain function and independence in activities of daily living. The focus of our research is on an attentional deficit called visuo-spatial neglect. Neglect makes it hard for an individual to pay attention and respond to information on the left side of the body or world around them. Currently, there is no standard treatment for neglect. This lack is due, in part, to our limited understanding of what causes neglect, because it can differ from individual to individual, and the symptoms also change over time. The purpose of this research is to learn more about how attention is affected after a stroke, how the effects recover over time, and to evaluate the effectiveness of a potential treatment for neglect. The long term aim of these studies is to maximize outcomes after stroke by learning what treatments are best for individual with neglect, in order to help them re-gain their functioning and improve quality of life after stroke.