Notes from the "Neuropsychological Rehabilitation" book
The book: neuropsychological rehabilitation - chad a. noggle & reymond s. dean
The nervous system is comprised of two basic kinds of cells - neurons and glia. there are approx 80 billion neurons and 200 biilion glia in the human nervous syses, neurons are the basic nerve cells in the central nervous system (cns) that respond to excitatory and inhibitory responses such as attention, memory, thinking, and reasoning.
Communication between neurons is completed through synapses, which are microscopic junctions for axons nd dendrites to connect for transmission of electrical and chemical messages crucial to brain functioning.
The primary emphasis of Vygotsky's Social Development Theory was that cognitive development is a byproduct of social interaction and thhat social learning led to development itself.
through play and interaction with their environment and culture, individuals develop higher level skills in thinking and communication
after brain injury persons reported persistent problems with behavioural disorders, personality changes, learning and memory deficits, psychosocial readjustment issues, social isolation, chronic unemployment, and major psychiatric disorders especially depression.
Children with brain injuries before the age of 2 had significantly lower scores in all domains of life, when compared to children injured after the age of 7. this supports the notion that brain injury earlier in life may have a greater effect on cognitive outcomes.
Neuroplasticity forms the basis of the field of neurorehabilitation as we know it. if it were not for neuroplasticity, there would be very little improvement in the functioning of individuals with brain lesions. the brain's ability to rewire and alter brain tissue for the purpose of adapting to changes externally or internally is called plasticity.
Different forms of plasticity exist. Activity-dependent plasticity refers to changes in the brain's ability to adapt to the environment based on activities that are performed that result in changed gene expression secondary to organised cellular mechanisms
