Overview
The current proposal is to generate "proof of concept" evidence that hemianopia can be successfully rehabilitated in humans when this multisensory rehabilitation paradigm is used.
Description
The over-arching objective is to evaluate the functional recovery of vision in hemianopic patients engaged with a multisensory training paradigm. Unilaterally blind participants will participate in weekly training sessions in which they are exposed to high-density spatiotemporally congruent and consistent visual-auditory stimulation. The participants will be tested on a battery of visual tasks probing different levels of function in different environments in a longitudinal study to track recovery.
Eligibility
Inclusion Criteria:
- adults (<85) of either sex
- diagnosis of a stable homonymous hemianopia (>6 months) with absence of hemineglect
- lesion encompassing at least primary visual cortex but sparing parietal cortex
- normal auditory and cognitive function
- willingness to participate in the three month program
- ability to perform the visual discriminations in their intact field
Exclusion Criteria:
- adults (>85)
- normal auditory and cognitive function
- unwilling to participate in the three month program
- inability to perform the visual discriminations in their intact field