Review of functional near-infrared spectroscopy in neurorehabilitation

Abstract

We provide a brief overview of the research and clinical applications of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in the neurorehabilitation field. NIRS has several potential advantages and shortcomings as a neuroimaging tool and is suitable for research application in the rehabilitation field. As one of the main applications of NIRS, we discuss its application as a monitoring tool, including investigating the neural mechanism of functional recovery after brain damage and investigating the neural mechanisms for controlling bipedal locomotion and postural balance in humans. In addition to being a monitoring tool, advances in signal processing techniques allow us to use NIRS as a therapeutic tool in this field. With a brief summary of recent studies investigating the clinical application of NIRS using motor imagery task, we discuss the possible clinical usage of NIRS in brain-computer interface and neurofeedback.

Keywords: functional recovery; near-infrared spectroscopy; neurofeedback; rehabilitation; stroke.

Figures

Fig. 1

Motor learning study using NIRS: (a) experimental setting of the PR, (b) location of optodes, (c) covering cortical surface by each channel, (d) longitudinal cortical activation changes in a healthy subject, and (e) longitudinal cortical activation changes in a stoke patient with ataxia. Reproduced from the articles by Hatakenaka et al.,, where details are reported. PFC, prefrontal cortex; pre-SMA, presupplementary motor area; SMA, supplementary motor area; PMC, premotor cortex; and SMC, sensorimotor cortex.

Fig. 2

Cortical activation during gait in a healthy subject: (a) optode location and estimated cortical projection, (b) cortical activation map during gait, and (c) experimental setting for a locomotor task.

Fig. 3

Gait-related cortical activation in healthy subjects and patients with ataxic stroke. Reproduced from the article by Mihara et al., where details are reported. © 2012 Masahito Mihara. Adapted from Applications of near infrared spectroscopy in neurorehabilitation. In Infrared Spectroscopy/Book 1 (ISBN: 979-953-307-362-9); originally published under CC BY 3.0 license. Available from doi: 10.5772/2655.

Fig. 4

Experimental setup for measurement of postural task-related cortical activation: (a) experimental overview, (b) schematic figure showing the platform movement, (c) task protocol in both conditions, and (d) cortical activation mapping based on the task-related OxyHb signal. Reproduced from the article by Mihara et al., where details are reported. © 2012 Masahito Mihara. Adapted from Applications of near infrared spectroscopy in neurorehabilitation. In Infrared Spectroscopy/Book 1 (ISBN: 979-953-307-362-9); originally published under CC BY 3.0 license. Available from doi: 10.5772/2655.

Fig. 5

Longitudinal changes of balance-related cortical activation: (a) the increased supplementary motor area activation after rehabilitation and (b) a significant correlation between cortical activation change and balance recovery. Reproduced from the article by Fujimoto et al., where details are reported. SMA, supplementary motor area and BBS, Berg balance scale.

Fig. 6

(a) Schema of the NIRS-based neurofeedback system, (b) NIRS-based neurofeedback in use, and (c) cortical activity increased after neurofeedback. Reproduced from the article by Mihara et al., where details are reported. GLM: General Linear Model.

Fig. 7

NIRS-based neurofeedback for upper limb paresis in poststroke patients: (a) Neurofeedback improved upper limb function after stroke and (b) functional recovery correlated with cortical activation change. Reproduced from the article by Mihara et al., where details are reported. FMA: Fugl-Meyer Assessment.