Communication in patients with disorders of consciousness – lessons learned From InteRDoCTor project

Abstract

Thanks to recent advances in health care an increased number of patients may recover from  severe brain injuries, but some of them are still assessed as non-responsive. Reliance on behavioural measures in communication with DoC patients seems be too prone to errors. There is need for solutions providing more objective attempts of bidirectional communication (intentional questions/commands and adequate related responses) in patients with DoC using significant processed by the patient stimuli and novel technologies (EEG-, fMRI-, BCI-based, etc.) based on recent scientific and clinical evidences. Such communication may be fulfilled even in the absence of behavior. This article aims at assessment the extent to which current possibilities in the area of devices for extended communication has been exploited, including own experiences within InteRDoCTor project.