Ameliorating Stroke-induced Hemianopia Via Multisensory Training
Wake Forest University Health Sciences
Summary
This study seeks to determine the extent of the visual capabilities that can be restored in hemianopic stroke patients by a multisensory training technique and evaluate changes in the brain that the training induces. The effectiveness of the technique will be evaluated in two interventional contexts: patients whose blindness is long-standing and stable, and another in which intervention is as soon as possible after the stroke.
Description
The aims of the study are to: 1\. To identify the visual capabilities and neural circuits in stroke patients with stable hemianopia (\>6 months) that recover after regular multisensory (vs. unisensory) training sessions. This involves: 1A. Using clinical ophthalmological tests and visual perceptual tests to evaluate the visual capabilities that are recovered. 1B. Determining whether the size or extent of cortical lesions are predictive of changes induced by the training technique, and tracking changes in the residual visual circuits using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). 1C. D…
Eligibility
- Age range
- 18+ years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- No
Inclusion Criteria: * Age \>= 18 years old * Homonymous hemianopia diagnosed and referred by a neurologist, confirmed with Humphrey test (Goldmann size V) on first visit. Hemianopia must have been evident for at least 6 months for inclusion in the first experiment and \<1 month for inclusion in the second * Cognitively normal, defined as having normal activities of daily living OR has received a cognitive adjudication of normal through the Wake Forest University School of Medicine or equivalent within the past 12 months * MRI compatible * Has reliable transportation or is able to use transpor…
Interventions
- BehavioralMultisensory Training
The procedure involves repeatedly presenting identical visual-auditory stimuli at a single location in the hemianopic field (initially at 45° of eccentricity along the azimuth) while the patient maintains central fixation (0°, 0°). The visual (a 500 ms flash) and auditory (500 ms broadband noise burst) stimuli are in spatial and temporal congruence.
- BehavioralUnisensory Training
The procedure involves repeatedly presenting identical auditory stimuli (500 ms broadband noise burst) at a single location in the hemianopic field (initially at 45° of eccentricity along the azimuth) while the patient maintains central fixation (0°, 0°).
Location
- Wake Forest University School of MedicineWinston-Salem, North Carolina