EEG hyperscanning in motor rehabilitation: a position paper

• Published in: Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation Vol. 18; no. 1; pp. 1 - 98
• Main Authors: Short, Matthew R, Hernandez-Pavon, Julio C, Jones, Alyssa, Pons, Jose L
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London BioMed Central Ltd 10.06.2021; BioMed Central; BMC
• Subjects: Brain; Brain connectivity; Brain research; Cognition; Cognition & reasoning; Data analysis; EEG; Electroencephalography; Gait; Group therapy; Head injuries; Human motion; Hyperscanning; Interpersonal relations; Laboratories; Medical imaging; Methods; Motor control; Motor task performance; Movement disorders; Neurodegenerative diseases; Neuroimaging; Parkinson's disease; Physiological aspects; Psychological aspects; Recording equipment; Rehabilitation; Social factors; Social interactions; Spinal cord injuries; Stroke; Traumatic brain injury; United States
• ISSN: 1743-0003; 1743-0003
• DOI: 10.1186/s12984-021-00892-6

Abstract Studying the human brain during interpersonal interaction allows us to answer many questions related to motor control and cognition. For instance, what happens in the brain when two people walking side by side begin to change their gait and match cadences? Adapted from the neuroimaging techniques used in single-brain measurements, hyperscanning (HS) is a technique used to measure brain activity from two or more individuals simultaneously. Thus far, HS has primarily focused on healthy participants during social interactions in order to characterize inter-brain dynamics. Here, we advocate for expanding the use of this electroencephalography hyperscanning (EEG-HS) technique to rehabilitation paradigms in individuals with neurological diagnoses, namely stroke, spinal cord injury (SCI), Parkinson’s disease (PD), and traumatic brain injury (TBI). We claim that EEG-HS in patient populations with impaired motor function is particularly relevant and could provide additional insight on neural dynamics, optimizing rehabilitation strategies for each individual patient. In addition, we discuss future technologies related to EEG-HS that could be developed for use in the clinic as well as technical limitations to be considered in these proposed settings.