Motor priming to enhance the effect of physical therapy in people with spinal cord injury

CONTEXT: Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) is an emerging neurorehabilitation therapy for people with spinal cord injury (SCI). OBJECTIVE: The study aimed to test whether priming the sensorimotor system using BCI-controlled functional electrical stimulation (FES) before physical practice is more beneficial than physical practice alone. METHODS: = 5) group performed physical practice (40 min) of the dominant hand. The primary outcome measures were BCI accuracy, adherence, and perceived workload. The secondary outcome measures were manual muscle test, grip strength, the range of motion, and Electroencephalography (EEG) measured brain activity. RESULTS: = 1.48e-04) indicating better neurological outcomes. There were no measurable immediate effects of BCI-FES priming. CONCLUSION: Priming the brain before physical therapy is feasible but may require more than 15 min. This warrants further investigation with an increased sample size.