Implementing New Technologies to Improve Visual–Spatial Functions in Patients with Impaired Consciousness

Abstract

The quality of life of patients with severe brain damage is compromised by, e.g., impaired cognitive functions and ocular dysfunction. The paper contains research findings regarding participants of an oculomotor training course aimed at the therapy of visual–spatial functions. Five male patients with brain damage who did not communicate, verbally or motorically, participated in the study. Over a six-week period, the subjects solved tasks associated with recognising objects, size perception, colour perception, perception of object structures (letters), perception of object structures (objects), detecting differences between images and assembling image components into the complete image with the use of an eye tracker. The findings present evidence of oculomotor training effectiveness based on a longer duration of the work with the eye tracker and improved visual–spatial functions.

Moving toward Appropriate Motor Assessment Tools in People Affected by Severe Acquired Brain Injury: A Scoping Review with Clinical Advices

“…It is noteworthy that patients with severe acquired brain injury who are unable to communicate verbally could be assessed using eye-tracking technology especially for cognitive function, particularly when eye movements are the only channel of communication in individuals after brain damage. Notably, these tools limit the patient’s isolation and encourage the autonomy of the individual with DoC and/or SABI, also improving the cognitive outcomes [ 59 , 60 ].…”

The Integration of Assistive Technology and Virtual Reality for Assessment and Recovery of Post-coma Patients With Disorders of Consciousness: A New Hypothesis

“…Second, systematic comparisons between procedures may be fundamental to determine the effects on a number of dimensions such as active role and positive participation (Lancioni et al, 2017 ). Kujawa et al ( 2022 ) recently investigated the outcomes of an oculomotor training course aimed at the therapy of visual-spatial functions. Five patients with brain damage who were unable to communicate verbally or motorically, diagnosed between the vegetative state and the emergence from the minimally conscious state were enrolled.…”