Overview
In the case of spinal cord injury, rehabilitation is particularly focused on motor skills. Non-motor impairments such as thinking difficulties did not receive a lot of attention to date.
In this research project, the investigators want to find out how thinking difficulties become noticeable in the brain with spinal cord injury.
Participation procedure: Participants who take part will be asked to come to an examination once. The duration of the examination is between 2 and 2.5 hours (including around 55 minutes in the magnetic resonance imaging scanner, including preparation and follow-up).
Eligibility
Inclusion criteria (with and without spinal cord injury):
- Male or Female
- Age between 18 and 60
- German native speaker
- Normal or corrected-to-normal visual acuity
Additional inclusion criteria (spinal cord injury only):
- A diagnosis of traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI)
- Time since injury 12 months or longer
- American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale (AIS) grade A, B, C and D
Exclusion criteria (with and without spinal cord injury):
- Contraindication for magnetic resonance imaging examinations (e.g., cardiac pacemaker etc.)
- Pregnancy
- Diagnosis of other psychiatric or neurological disorders (including tumor in the central nervous system)
- Alcohol and/or drug abuse
- Confirmed diagnosis of traumatic brain injury
- Insufficient hand function (not able to hold a pen due to the restricted motor abilities)