Utilizing movement-related potentials to monitor cognitive rehabilitation in individuals with central nervous system disorders: A review.

Abstract

In current neuroscience, there is a pressing need to evaluate the effectiveness of treatments for motor and cognitive disorders. In addition, there is a gap in the literature on assessing this type of rehabilitation. This review proposes using Movement-Related Potentials (MRPs) as a relevant marker for such evaluations. The method employed involves administering a psychomotor task known as the Skilled Performance Task (SPT). Originally described in 1980 by Papakostopoulos, the SPT requires specific abilities, such as bimanual coordination, adaptive programming, and precise timing. Subjects must start and stop a sweep on an oscilloscope screen with accurate timing, receiving immediate feedback that aids in performance improvement. This self-paced, goal-directed, and interactive task ensures continuous engagement and learning. Suitable for all ages, the SPT provides real-time feedback and demands constant attention and reprogramming of movements, making it an effective tool for assessing and promoting cognitive rehabilitation through neuroplasticity. The originality of this task lies in the ability to obtain, with a single motor act, a series of potentials that represent different stages of the processing of a goal-directed and self-initiated action. The MRPs associated with this task are the Bereitschaftspotential (BP), the Motor Cortex Potential (MCP), the N100, the P200, the Skilled Performance Positivity (SPP) and the Post-Action Negativity (PAN). The present study reinterprets previous research conducted on children and adults with various central nervous system pathologies, from a cognitive rehabilitation perspective, to provide new insights into neurorehabilitation techniques utilizing MRPs.