Neurological diseases (e.g. stroke, Parkinson’s disease) and brain injury are major causes of disability, typically affecting how people move and function. Healthcare provision in the area is dominated by rehabilitation. The field of neuroscience has developed rapidly in recent years and our improved related knowledge should offer hope and promise for individuals affected by neurological disease. However, the challenges of translating promising findings from the neurosciences into real world benefits for individuals has proved difficult and represents a major current and future challenge for research and practice. This module responds directly to this challenge, introducing students to the behavioural (e.g. how movement is affected) and neural (e.g. how the brain adapts) consequences of neurological damage and how an understanding of these can and has led to progress. In doing so, the focus of the module will be on how behaviour and the nervous system is affected by disease or injury and how it responds and adapts as a result of time (e.g. natural recovery, degeneration) and interventions (e.g. specific forms of exercise).
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the module, students should be able to:
Critically discuss the relationship between brain structure and function, highlighting common problems that may result from brain damage.
Critically discuss the basis for recovery following brain damage with reference to physiological and psychological mechanisms.
Explain the nature of common motor and cognitive deficits that result from brain damage and the related implications for function.
Critically evaluate the efficacy of contemporary approaches to neuro-rehabilitation.
Effectively perform a series of laboratory-based techniques focusing on brain structure and human performance, and integrate resulting findings with related theory/knowledge.